MIDDLESBROUGH will agree to any offer from Sporting Lisbon for out-of-favour Brazilian midfielder Fabio Rochemback - but only after they have a ready-made replacement lined up.

Sporting want to take Rochemback on loan in January with a view to a permanent deal, with sources close to the player suggesting a potential move has already been agreed.

But, given that Gaizka Mendieta also looks like heading out of the Riverside Stadium in the near future, Middlesbrough boss Gareth Southgate wants suitable replacements in place before finalising any deals.

Having previously admitted a preference for buying players with Premiership experience, Southgate has recently suggested he is ready to look abroad to find the right men.

But he will be keen to avoid a repeat of the way the likes of Rochemback, Mendieta and Massimo Maccarone have all struggled to adapt to the English game since their arrivals on Teesside.

Rochemback, the more recent acquisition of the three, has shown glimpses of the talent that made him a household name with Sporting, and attracted Middlesbrough to him in the first place.

He was instrumental in the UEFA Cup defeat of Middlesbrough two years ago which led Steve McClaren to sign him in the summer of 2005.

McClaren missed out on who was his top target from Sporting, Rudolph Douala, now at Portsmouth, but landed Rochemback after Boro struck an agreement with both the Lisbon giants and his parent club Barcelona.

He turned 25 on Sunday and started 22 Premiership games last season, a period in which he struggled to prove himself to the Boro supporters.

However, Sporting have clearly not lost faith in his ability and sources close to Rochemback suggest it is already a done deal.

Southgate, though, will only give the go-ahead so long as he is more than happy with the plans in place to bring an alternative in.

As well as a midfielder or two, the Middlesbrough manager is also looking to bolster his attacking ranks when the transfer window opens in January.

Preston's David Nugent remains top of his list, and Deepdale boss Paul Simpson is facing up to the prospect of selling the Under-21 international in the new year.

Southgate knows that a new forward has to be recruited, particularly as a recent disagreement with Maccarone over team selection is likely to see the Italian leave.

The club's record buy is wanted back in his homeland by Empoli, Torino and Siena, and with his contract ending in the summer, Boro will take a massive loss on the £8.15m they paid four years ago.