STEWART DOWNING has been described as 'every striker's dream' by the man forming an almost telepathic understanding with the youngster down Middlesbrough's left flank.

Full back Franck Queudrue is not the only one to believe his 20-year-old team-mate is the hottest property around and is urging Sven-Goran Eriksson to call him up for next week's friendly in Spain.

Downing, expected to start at Liverpool in the Carling Cup tonight, has been a revelation in the Premiership and in Europe this season.

He has tormented many top defenders - including Gary Neville when his display at Old Trafford last month was capped by a memorable goal.

There is a suggestion that the left winger, touted as the long-term solution to the problematic search for talent down that side for the international team, struggles to deliver his final ball with precision.

But Queudrue believes there are few who can cross as well as Downing and the Frenchman also claims the Teesside-born youngster has now started to turn undoubted potential into genuine class.

"He's got a pace about him and is a quality crosser of the ball," said Queudrue. "He's a dream to play with if you are a centre forward.

"There are few others who centre-forwards would rather have putting the ball in. He has the pace to beat his man when he is one-on-one then he provides for the strikers.

"He's also clever with the ball. He can play the ball inside or outside, he can also play the neat one-two. He can run beyond the defender and wait for the ball over the top. He changes his game to suit.

"He has improved a lot this year. He worked hard last year but he was in the shadows. This year his goals have helped. He deserves to get called up.

"If I was Sven-Goran Eriksson I would pick him because he is in very good form. It's the right time for him to be given a chance."

Queudrue has never hidden the fact that he hopes Boro's sudden surge into the European spotlight would strengthen his case for a call-up to the French team.

As yet there as been no Les Bleus scouts visiting the Riverside Stadium but he believes he is in form and is closing in on a magnum of champagne from coach Steve Harrison.

"I have now got four - three assists and a goal - from the 12 that I have been told to get if I want to win my bet," said Queudrue. "But first of all I have been trying to defend and make sure we do not concede too much. That's better for the team.

"I will not go for any of my own objectives if it's best for the team that I sit back. I will do that even though I like to go forward. I am quite free to go forward still and I'm sure I will assist."

Queudrue could add to his tally against Liverpool tonight when Middlesbrough travel to Anfield, where the crowd will be ready to pay their respects to legendary skipper Emlyn Hughes - a former team-mate of Steve McClaren at Hull City - who died yesterday aged 57.

Liverpool strikers Milan Baros and Djibril Cisse are both out through injury and having lost Michael Owen to Real Madrid in the summer goals appear to be hard to come by.

But, despite knowing of Liverpool's 1-0 home defeat to Birmingham last Saturday, Queudrue said: "They may have quality forwards out but they still have players like Luis Garcia, who can make a difference in an instant. It's still going to be a hard game for us.

"We want to win this trophy because we don't have many trophies here. We try to win every single game and we are ambitious."

Despite an indifferent start to life as Gerard Houllier's successor at Liverpool, Middlesbrough boss McClaren insists Rafa Benitez is the man to take the Merseyside outfit forward.

"I met Rafa in Portugal while he was meeting England's Liverpool players and I also met him for a week while I was at Manchester United. He's a real gentleman. A real football man and good for our game," said McClaren.

"Liverpool are in a transitional period so it's understandable to have a few results like Saturday's defeat. But they are still doing well in Europe and challenging in the Premiership.

"Benitez is handling it very well. He's won things (guided Valencia to Primera Liga title last season) and as long as he integrates with the culture, which he appears to have done, he will do a good job."

McClaren went down in history as the first manager to guide Boro to major honours last season and he wants his players to retain the Carling Cup.

They are unbeaten in nine matches and McClaren, who has no fresh injury worries after Mark Schwarzer recovered from a head injury, is happy with the way his team are coping with a congested fixture list. "We have now gone on a good run and we have used 24 players," said McClaren, who is expected to make changes from the side that drew with Bolton.

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