MIDDLESBROUGH boss Steve McClaren has told firebrand Danny Mills he must exercise the restraint he showed in the Carling Cup victory at Arsenal if he is to win back his England place.

Mills caused a storm when Boro suffered their recent 4-1 Premiership defeat at Highbury after he held up Thierry Henry's attempt to take a penalty and exchanged heated words with the Gunners' striker.

Not surprisingly, Boro's on-loan right-back was booed every time he touched the ball in the Carling semi-final first leg on Tuesday, when Juninho's solitary strike claimed a memorable success for McClaren's men.

McClaren admitted on the eve of the tie that he had warned Mills against the dangers of reacting to the inevitable jibes of the Arsenal faithful.

Although he picked up his eighth booking of the season for a foul on Gilberto, the normally feisty Mills generally adopted a more measured approach and won praise from his manager, who is trying to sign him on a permanent basis from Leeds before the transfer window closes at the end of the month.

Mills is now ready to run a gauntlet of hate again on Saturday when Boro visit Highbury for the third time in a fortnight in the fourth round of the FA Cup.

And he admits he is relishing another contest with Henry, after insisting the nature of their last confrontation was "blown out of proportion'' and "a bit of a farce''.

Mills' last England start was in the Euro 2004 qualifier against Slovakia at the Riverside last June, when he was hauled off by Sven-Goran Eriksson before half-time following a poor performance.

Since then he has made only one substitute appearance for his country, in the friendly with Croatia at Ipswich in August.

But McClaren, Eriksson's former assistant coach, said: "Danny handled himself well against Arsenal the other night.

"He was disappointed in his performance the last time we were there. What we saw this time was a mature performance and that's what Danny needs to bring into his game because, if you're going to play at international level, you need maturity and experience.''

Mills refused to rise to the bait from the Arsenal fans, who he said had called him "moron'' and "Satan'' on the day of his spat with Henry.

But he admitted his concern that referee Steve Dunn may have been influenced by the crowd's behaviour in booking him on Tuesday.

Mills said: "Did the crowd play on my mind? Not at all. The only disappointment was that the referee might have got carried away with the crowd's reaction.

"I was booked for a sliding tackle and I thought that was my only supposed foul of the game. I thought it was harsh.

"It's quite funny, especially being a full-back on the touchline, you get some absolutely ridiculous comments.

"But you just have to laugh. People get so wound up and passionate.

"After the last game, I was a moron, I was Satan, I was all sorts.

"I quite expect to get booed from the first minute to the last in Saturday's match as well. Even after I played an England international at Portman Road, having left Norwich six or seven years ago, I got booed. That's what football is all about. It's all part of the fun of it.

"I've always taken a lot of stick verbally and physically and I've never really been one to moan and have a go at other players.

"Even when there was an incident with Graeme Le Saux, it was never a problem. I spoke to Graeme the day after and we had a good chat and laughed about it.

"Things happen on a football pitch, it's a game of emotion and passion, but what happens on the pitch stays there.

"What happened with Thierry Henry was 30 seconds out of 90 minutes and was blown out of all proportion.

"As he said, what if he'd missed? The Middlesbrough fans would have thought it was a great idea then.

"No player is unflappable and I wasn't even trying to put him off. We just asked the referee to re-spot the ball and he did.

"But because of the crowd's reaction, everyone gets carried away and it becomes a bit of a farce.''

* Boro midfielder Mark Wilson, who recently survived an horrific car crash, is set to join Second Division Sheffield Wednesday on a month's loan as cover for injured former Riverside favourite Robbie Mustoe.

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