ANOTHER inadequate attendance for a Middlesbrough fixture in Europe has led to goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer suggesting a change of UEFA Cup format could be the best way to bring back the fans.

The Boro shot-stopper is calling for European football chiefs to reconsider the structure of the competition for next season, claiming a group stage involving the Champions League losers could be the best way to go.

Despite this being only the second UEFA Cup campaign in the club's history, thousands of fans are refusing to pay the money for ties against many of football's lesser names.

Less than 13,000 witnessed Boro's comprehensive 3-0 win over Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk on Thursday night, a victory that has taken Steve McClaren's side to within a point of qualification to the last 32.

Having only played two out of the four Group D matches, and the fact third place books a place in the next stage, it is incredible to think Boro can already start to plan ahead.

Schwarzer, who insists going back to a knock-out format is not the way forward, would love to see Champions League teams fall into a UEFA Cup group when they have been eliminated from the elite competition.

"The current way is a trial period because they are only doing it for the second time in the history of the UEFA Cup. They could reassess things again," said Schwarzer.

"There may not be the edge in the UEFA Cup that there was when it was a knockout competition but as players we really like the way the competition is, it gives us the opportunity to play four games.

"The format is definitely something UEFA will have to look at. What they could do is try to make it so it becomes a group stage when the losers from the Champions League come into it. Then the big teams would be in your group and I'm sure that would attract more fans."

Boro striker Aiyegbeni Yakubu, expected to start alongside Jimmy-Floyd Hasselbaink at Everton tomorrow despite Mark Viduka's two goals against Dnipro, was one to air his disbelief at the banks of red seats at the Riverside.

The £7.5m summer acquisition from Portsmouth is the team's top-scorer this season with seven goals, but admits he would love to be finding the net in front of a full-house - something that has become a thing of the past on Teesside.

"It's shocking because most teams in the world want to play in Europe.

"To see crowds like this, and they do not turn up in the way they used to, is disappointing.

"We want more than we got on Thursday," he said.

"The spirit was there from those who turned up but it would have been nice to have more. What can we do? It would have been nice to play in front of bigger crowds than that.

"When you have a bigger crowd there's motivation to do more. But there's nothing we can do about it. We just have to keep our own minds on our game."

But Schwarzer was keen to stress the point that he feels the whole climate in the sport nowadays has changed to such a degree that fans are not willing to pay the admission prices as often as they once would have.

"It is disappointing for the chairman and all of the players. When you think about all the hard work and graft we put into the season and the end result is playing in the UEFA Cup then that's great," he said.

"If you ask supporters if they want to be involved in the UEFA cup they would say 'yes'. Then you turn out to play a game in it and there's not a full house. But that's the nature of the way the competition is.

"I can understand there is a lot of football going on, there's a lot of football on TV and a lot being said about the standard of football."

Part of the reason why Boro are failing to attract large crowds is the fact they have been branded as boring by large sections of the media. But, despite their reputation, only leaders Chelsea have scored more than the Teessiders in the Premiership this season - while Yakubu, Hasselbaink and Viduka have scored 15 between them in all competitions.

"We were inconsistent to begin with but hopefully we are on the start of a good run," said Schwarzer, looking to extend their winning run to four matches at Everton.

"In the last three games we have scored eight goals and conceded one.

Sunday is vitally important for us.

"There have been games were we have been dire, so to speak, but if you look at anything in the league all teams go through those sort of performances, including Chelsea at the top."

Read more about Middlesbrough here.