RAY Parlour last night threw his weight behind Steve McClaren's search for midfield re-inforcements and urged the Boro boss not to give up on his pursuit of Rudolph Douala.

McClaren has spent most of the summer trying to sign the "two midfielders" he feels his squad still lacks.

Douala looks like becoming the latest player to have fallen through the net after Sporting Lisbon turned down Boro's £4.2m offer for the versatile winger.

McClaren admitted his interest was all but at an end on Sunday night and, while the Teessiders will continue to monitor the situation, a list of alternative targets is already being drawn up.

Parlour accepts the need for more midfielders, despite an influx of new blood potentially putting his own place at risk.

With the closure of the transfer window still more than three weeks away, the former England international has told his boss not to give up on anything.

"There's no doubt we need a few more numbers in midfield," said Parlour, who played alongside George Boateng as Boro rounded off their pre-season preparations with a 1-0 win over Espanyol last weekend. "It would only be good for the team.

"You've got to keep adding to the squad - it's the only way to make the team better. There might be times when someone might take your place because they're playing better than you - you've got to hold your hand up and admit you don't deserve to be in the team if that's the case.

"There's been talk about Douala, the left winger from Sporting Lisbon. He's quick - a very good player - and I'm sure he'd give Stewart Downing a bit of competition.

"It isn't easy to complete a deal like that. Transfers take so long to sort out now with the clubs wrangling over transfer fees and contracts.

"We probably need another central midfield player as well. We've got the likes of myself, George and Doriva, but we need a bit of competition and cover."

With Gaizka Mendieta's knee injury ruling him out of most of last season, Parlour spent the bulk of the campaign playing on the right wing.

While the 32-year-old hardly let anyone down, he freely admits that his ageing legs struggled to cope with the physical demands of such an energy-sapping role.

He has looked far more comfortable filling a central role this summer and, with Bolo Zenden having left the Riverside for Liverpool, it would be a major surprise if he did not start alongside Boateng when the Reds roll into town on Saturday.

"We've got good players in central midfield," said Parlour. "But I'm not getting any younger and playing at right midfield is a lot harder for me.

"You've got to have younger legs to be able to play out on the wing because you've got to be able to get up and down.

"We were very unlucky with injuries in that part of the field last season. Mendieta missed almost all of the season and James Morrison had spells when he was off as well.

"I filled the gap, but I'm hoping my main position this season will be central midfield."

While McClaren is somewhat short of options in the central areas, the Boro boss is blessed with an embarrassment of riches up front.

Aiyegbeni Yakubu has bolstered a forward line that already includes Jimmy-Floyd Hasselbaink, Mark Viduka, Szilard Nemeth and Joseph-Desire Job, and at least two of the strikers are sure to be left disappointed this weekend.

"We've got a lot of strikers and there will be times when people are unhappy," admitted Parlour. "But it's a nice problem to have.

"The top teams all have four good strikers - we've probably got five or six, so that can't be bad.

"We're going to have a strong bench and that can be very important. When I was at Arsenal, it was quite common for us to throw two new strikers on for the last 15 minutes if we were losing the game. It can cause problems and make a big difference."

Parlour spent 13 years at Highbury as the Gunners established themselves as one of Europe's leading lights.

Middlesbrough are still some way short of being European regulars, but the former UEFA Cup winner insists more continental competition is the very least they should be aiming for this season.

"I think getting into Europe again has to be the minimum requirement," he said. "We need to get to a position where nobody expects Middlesbrough not to be in at least the UEFA Cup.

"Expectations will be high again, but that's what you get from playing for a big club. If we can progress from last season and move up the league, that would be great."

* Slizard Nemeth and Massimo Maccarone are included in a young Boro squad to face Aston Villa at Billingham Synthonia tonight.

Squad: Jones, Pennock, McMahon, Wheater, Grounds, Hines, Liddle, A Johnson, Cattermole, Kennedy, Nemeth, Maccarone, Walker, Burgess, Craddock, J Johnson.

Read more about Middlesbrough here.