UGO Ehiogu fears Emanuel Pogatetz's tendency to snap could contribute to a European exit for Middlesbrough and has urged the Austrian defender to curb his hot-temper.

And Boro's experienced former England centre-back has joked that Pogatetz should count to 20 whenever h\e feels riled on the field of play instead of over-reacting to situations.

Ehiogu, also keen to praise the way his team-mate has grown in stature on the Premiership stage since his summer move from Bayer Leverkusen, has made his comments in light of what happened at the Riverside Stadium on Sunday.

Pogatetz, after sustaining a cut that needed five stitches in an aerial challenge with Bolton's Kevin Davies, charged after the Trotters striker suggesting he had deliberately elbowed him in the face.

The Boro star, some four minutes later, then chose to celebrate directly in front of Davies when Stuart Parnaby struck an injury-time winner.

That incident led to the pair having a further altercation after the final whistle had blown and assistant manager Steve Round had to intervene.

It is that sort of incident which has led to him being given the nickname Mad Dog on Teesside and the sort of clash Ehiogu is calling for an end to.

And, with a UEFA Cup quarter-final first leg with Swiss side Basel on Thursday next on the agenda, the 33-year-old feels a failure to do so could hamper Boro's chances of going all the way in the European competition.

But Ehiogu also wants to stress that Pogatetz - who arrived from a loan spell with Spartak Moscow with a six-month ban hanging over his head - has worked wonders with his game in the seven months he has been working under defensive coach Steve Harrison at Boro.

"You don't want to take away his drive and determination but at times he needs to cool and calm himself down, especially in Europe," said Ehiogu.

"It could be costly in Europe because one of the referees in the European game could interpret his actions or demeanour as being threatening and that's a red card offence.

"He has improved as a player and you have to give him credit for that.

He has worked very hard with Steve Harrison and once he looks back on Sunday he will know he has to calm himself a lot.

"There are times when you want him to be aggressive and be on the front foot but there are times when he shouldn't be. Maybe he needs to count to 20 instead of ten.

"You wouldn't want to take much out of his game, just at times he needs to calm himself then he wouldn't be in danger of being sent off."

Pogatetz picked up his 13th booking of the season on Sunday - two of which were for Austria - and recently admitted he was delighted that he was yet to receive a red card for Boro, something he claimed could be a personal record.

He is likely to start against Basel on Thursday in a competition where he has already picked up four yellow cards and served one ban this season.

It remains to be seen whether or not Ehiogu retains his place in the starting line-up against the Swiss outfit as both Gareth Southgate and Chris Riggott are expected to be fit for the tie.

After an outstanding display in the goalless FA Cup quarter-final draw with Charlton last week Ehiogu was not at his best against Bolton, as part of an unfamiliar three-man central defence that leaked three goals.

But the former Aston Villa man was relieved to see another three points secured in Boro's bid to climb free of relegation danger.

There are now 13 points separating Steve McClaren's men and the drop zone, with most clubs having 24 points to play for. And, although safety does look as if it has been achieved, Ehiogu is not about to admit as much yet.

"We know we are still in a predicament where we are still looking over our shoulders to those below us," said Ehiogu, who could still leave in the summer after a January switch to West Brom broke down.

"When you are in that situation you know anything can happen and no club knows that more than Middlesbrough.

"When Bryan Robson was here this club got to two cup finals and were relegated in 1997. You don't need any more encouragement than that really. We have to avoid a repeat. Saturday was a massive win for us to ensure that doesn't happen.

"We looked at the next three games, including Bolton, and we wanted a minimum of seven points. This is a good start. Once we get to 40 points, we have 37, then maybe we can play better stuff and look up the table instead of down it."

Ehiogu also admitted he should have done better with his weak header in the build up to Stelios Giannakopoulos' opener for Bolton on Sunday; a strike that opened the floodgates to a seven-goal thriller.

"When you come up against Bolton, the way they play, it's going to be frantic and full of incidents," said Ehiogu.

"It was a bit of a soft first goal to concede. I should have won the header clearly. We didn't deal with it after that."