JUNINHO has told Middlesbrough not to give up on their European dream.

The Brazilian star is due back on Teesside this week after an intense course of rehabilitation following knee surgery to repair a torn anterior cruciate ligament.

He has watched Boro's early-season promise turn to mid-table mediocrity.

But the 29-year-old midfielder is convinced 11th-placed Boro can close a six-point gap and return to the Premiership's top half dozen.

A good League finish is Boro's only salvation this season after they crashed out of both cups.

''Of course it's disappointing to be out of the cups, but now we have to concentrate and do our best to get our League form right,'' stressed Juninho. "We still have a chance of being in Europe next year and we have to keep going.''

Boro brought Juninho back to the Riverside last summer for a third spell before he was injured in a low-key pre-season tournament in Italy.

''We believed he would give us that little bit extra that would win us football matches,'' said manager Steve McClaren.

''We haven't missed him because we've never had him available this season, but looking at the team as it performs, we can see him fitting in very well, and it's an exciting prospect that he will be back before the end of the season.''

Dean Windass's proposed loan return to Sheffield United yesterday fell through after the Blades revealed that Boro wanted the guarantee of a "sizeable fee'' to make the deal permanent at the end of the season, if the midfielder helped them to promotion.

''We were some way down the line to getting him, but Middlesbrough wanted a sizeable fee for him should we get promoted,'' said club spokesman Andy Pack.

''But we would not be prepared to pay a fee and if the deal doesn't happen this week, we will probably look elsewhere.''

Boro were yesterday still waiting for a decision from Derby County over their bid to take striker Malcolm Christie and defender Chris Riggott on loan with a view to a permanent deal in the summer.

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