STEVE McCLAREN last night urged his resurgent Middlesbrough side to chase a long-odds European place after they climbed into the Premiership's top ten with victory over relegation-threatened Derby at Pride Park.

Manager McClaren, who leads his men into an FA Cup semi-final clash with Arsenal at Old Trafford on Sunday week, hinted at the possibility of Boro scrambling into a UEFA Cup spot via the League.

Depending on key permutations, seventh place could be enough to book a European berth - and Boro are now only three points behind Tottenham from the same number of games.

The Premiership table is so tight that Boro are still not absolutely safe from relegation.

But McClaren said: "It's up to the players now where they want to go and where they want to be.

"We've achieved nothing yet - mathematically we've not even achieved safety. We've got to keep going. It has been very tight all season and you look at Tottenham in seventh place.

"But we're not getting carried away. We're absolutely delighted with where we are and now it's a test of the players' desire.

"They've got an FA Cup semi-final and five matches left in the League, and they should be looking forward to each game.''

England coach McClaren, who lost his first four games as Boro boss, has now presided over a run of only three defeats in 19 outings in all competitions.

"We've recovered from a poor start to the season,'' said McClaren.

"Since the turn of the year the players have been magnificent and now we've broken through the 40-point barrier. This is a massive win for us.

"I thought we were very professional in our approach and we defended very well. The only disappointment was not scoring more on the break. With better quality, we would have done.''

McClaren revealed that match-winner Robbie Mustoe had defied an Achilles injury to keep his place and score the only goal.

"It shows what a great pro he has been,'' stressed McClaren. "He did well to start the game after Saturday against Tottenham because his Achilles was sore.

"I thought Paul Ince and he in the middle were magnificent.''

McClaren confirmed that striker Alen Boksic missed the game with a groin injury sustained in the Spurs clash.

"He did well to finish that game,'' said McClaren, who is hoping his leading scorer recovers for this Saturday's visit of Aston Villa.

"His groin stiffened up after Saturday's match, but we're hoping it's nothing serious.''

Meanwhile, former Derby coach McClaren backed John Gregory to ultimately resurrect the Rams' fortunes. But admitted Gregory must pull off a Houdini act to save them from the drop.

McClaren, also an ex-Derby player, confessed: "It's a great win for us, but it's tinged with sadness because it leaves Derby in a precarious position.

"It might be too late for them now, but I think John was a magnificent appointment and I fully expect Derby to go forward under him.''

After seeing his side lose for the fourth time in five games, the usually garrulous Gregory conceded: "I'm lost for words.

"The pressure has got to some players. I took Fabrizio Ravanelli and Branko Strupar off at half-time because Ugo Ehiogu and Gareth Southgate were coming on to everything and we didn't turn them around. We didn't cause them problems in the first half and we needed a change.

"But we have to keep going. Middlesbrough won at Manchester United the other week so anything is possible.''