GARETH SOUTHGATE has insisted that Middlesbrough have come of age as a Premier League club, and have finally earned the respect of their footballing peers.

The Teessiders spent the mid 1990s yo-yoing between the old first division and the Premiership, but are now enjoying their seventh successive season in the top flight.

The Carling Cup holders have also slotted seamlessly into the European game, with Boro unbeaten in the UEFA Cup and topping their group after their 2-0 victory over Lazio last week.

In their last two home Premiership games both Portsmouth and Bolton have tried to nullify the threat of Boro's attacking play - a fact that hasn't been lost on their skipper.

"Teams are coming to the Riverside and showing us a lot more respect," said Southgate, who played his 376th Premiership game against Bolton, which took him to outright fourth in the all time appearances list behind Gary Speed, Alan Shearer and Ryan Giggs.

"Teams are coming here with one striker and we're having to adjust to that.

"In a week we have shown we can play football and win (against Lazio), and then we can battle and scrap to grind out results which we did against Bolton.

"Against Portsmouth we dominated the game, against Bolton it was a bit more even.

"What other clubs realise is that at home we will create and score goals."

The Carling Cup success and the sigings of stars like Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, Mark Viduka, Ray Parlour have raised the expectations at the Riverside to such an extent that draws against Bolton and Portsmouth are met with disappointment.

But the Teessiders home form - where they have won only twice in the league - is one area that doesn't concern the captain.

"We knew that Bolton would be a very tough game and the think that it came after our European game was relevant only in that they had a bit longer to prepare than we did," said Southgate, who has skippered a side that has failed to win each of the four Premiership games that have immediately followed UEFA Cup games.

"We've finished the game very strongly - so we've shown we can cope with the games coming up thick and fast.

"If we want to be successful then we're going to have three games in a week and I don't think any of us are going to complain about that if it means we're progressing in all the cup competitions.

"The important thing is that we keep doing well on our travels. If we had gone fourth in the table it would have been great but it doesn't really make that much difference.

"We want to be up in that top bracket because we want to be involved in that area of the table after Christmas."

"But there's nothing in the rules of the game that tell you how you have to play.

"Bolton play to their strengths and other teams have got to cope with that.

"It's nothing that we haven't faced before against other teams and they are very effective at what they do and how they play."

Meanwhile, Michael Reiziger is targeting Boro's final UEFA Cup group game for his return from the shoulder injury that has kept him on the sidelines for three months.

The Holland international hopes to resume full training before the end of the month, and a return to first-team duties soon after.

He said "I first hurt my shoulder in the friendly against Hansa Rostock and I went down on it again against Arsenal.

"One bone was broken and I needed an operation to repair it. It was really frustrating because you want to impress when you join a new club.

"I had surgery in Switzerland and rehabilitation has taken the best part of three months. Now I hope to be back on the field again very quickly.

"It's been great to get back to proper training. I've done a lot of running and my general fitness is good but now I am working with the ball as well.

"At this stage I still have to be careful because I still don't have full movement.

"But I feel strong and I'm hoping that within a couple of weeks I should be able to play again."

* Boro goalkeeper Ross Turnbull will remain at Barnsley for the remainder of the season after his current loan deal was extended.

* Boro's FA Barclays Premiership Reserve League fixture away to Leeds United, which was due to take place tonight (Tues), has been rearranged to take place on Wednesday January 5 (7pm ko) at the Atlantic Solutions Stadium, Wakefield.

* Bolton boss Sam Allardyce has warned El Hadji Diouf to curb his provocative behaviour before it rebounds in his face.

The Senegalese forward - at the centre of an FA investigation into spitting allegations at the Riverside on Sunday - became public enemy number one at Middlesbrough by his confrontational tactics.

Diouf was booed for a series of incidents including over-reacting to challenges, constant time-wasting and being aggressive towards opponents Tony McMahon and Ray Parlour.

Allardyce defended some of Diouf's tactics during the 1-1 draw but will have a word about his other behaviour.

''He's getting people agitated and infuriated and he needs to control that side of his character because it will do us and him no good in the end,'' Allardyce said.

''He was no doubt a thorn in Boro's side all day long. He's improving with every game but he just needs a quiet word to curb the other side that might get him sent off.''

* Bolton have appealed against goalkeeper Jussi Jaaskelainen's red card - shown by referee Peter Walton for denying Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink a goal-scoring chance on Sunday at the Riverside.

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