STEVE McCLAREN has urged his struggling Middlesbrough side to rediscover their mean streak and hinted that a more defensive approach may be needed to bring them out of an early-season rut.

Boro are second bottom in the Premiership after picking up only one point from their first four games in a start that echoes McClaren's miserable introduction to management two years ago.

Then, Boro lost their opening four games, conceding 11 goals and scoring only once.

Now they find themselves with ten in the goals-against column with four scored, and McClaren admits a tactical rethink is on the agenda.

The arrivals of loan trio Danny Mills, Gaizka Mendieta and Boudewijn Zenden provide Boro with more options.

McClaren seems certain to range wide men Mendieta and Zenden either side of the roving Juninho.

But the Boro boss is clearly worried that his side could be over-run in midfield, where the role of George Boateng will be crucial in a holding position.

McClaren, whose team are next in action at Bolton a week today, said: "One thing we have always done for the past two years is make sure we don't concede goals and are hard to beat.

"In our first four games here we conceded 11 goals and after that we bedded down and became one of the meanest defences in the country.

"Now we need to get back to that. We have plenty of people who can go forward and play exciting, flowing football. We had 27 shots against Leeds last Saturday and how we lost, I don't know.

"But we have to give more protection to the back players. We have exciting options now, but balance in the side is something we have possibly lacked.

"We've gone from having the third best defence in the Premier League to the second worst. We have to ask if there is enough cover in front of the defence and are we working hard enough? Is playing with two or three strikers opening too many holes at the back and can we cope with that?

"There are many questions to be asked now that we have brought in Mills, Mendieta and Zenden."

* Wigan boss Paul Jewell has finally brought his hunt for a striker to an end by completing the signing of Birmingham striker Geoff Horsfield, writes mark davis.

The former Fulham and Halifax player moves to the JJB Stadium for a fee in the region of £1m and has signed a three-year deal with the club and Horsfield insists he is delighted to make the switch.

''Once I knew that Birmingham were willing to let me go it was an easy decision to come here,'' he said. ''Leaving Birmingham is hard, but I believe I am joining a club that is going places.

''I could easily have sat out the last two years of my contract at Birmingham, but that's not my style - I just want to play football.

''Coming here should give me the chance of first-team football and I can't wait to get started in training on Monday or for my first game against Wimbledon next Saturday.'' Horsfield could not make himself a regular in Steve Bruce's first team plans.

Stern John, Christophe Dugarry and Clinton Morrison were ahead of him in the pecking order last season. Bruce has now moved to take Chelsea's Mikael Forssell on loan, spelling the end for Horsfield at St Andrews.

Read more about Middlesbrough here.