STEVE McCLAREN has tipped Middlesbrough goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer to overcome his nightmare at Elland Road.

Schwarzer was arguably at fault for being slow off his line for Leeds' opener, and then made a complete hash of a weak James Milner shot in the second half, which allowed Mark Viduka in to score.

But Boro boss McClaren, who saw the Aussie No 1 make a flying save to tip over an Alan Smith drive shortly after half-time, is convinced his shot-stopper can soon forget about his mishaps.

"Mark has been excellent all season for us," said McClaren, who knows Arsenal have been linked with the player in recent months. "I think the two goals against Leeds could have been prevented before the ball even got into the box.

"There are always mistakes all across the pitch in games but against Leeds those mistakes cost us a couple of goals."

The Riverside chief has also been delighted to see his side overcome a poor run of form to climb their way back up the Premiership table.

Prior to the clash at Liverpool on February 8, Boro had won just once in 11 games. But Saturday's 3-2 victory means they have won three of their last five.

And McClaren points to the return from injury of Juninho, and boosting the squad with new signings Malcolm Christie, Chris Riggott, Michael Ricketts and Doriva as major factors in the sudden turnaround.

"We changed things around and we have now gone five games unbeaten," said McClaren, whose side play host to European hopefuls Charlton this Saturday. "We got beat against Aston Villa and we knew we needed to change things and we have only seen positive signs against Leeds.

"Juninho coming back to full fitness is a big boost. It has been like having five new players. We brought four new players in but he is a fifth really.

And on the little Brazilian's impressive display, McClaren said: "He has been amazing. It's only his second full game. You have to remember that he has had to recover from a medial knee injury.

"But after six months out he can still run and keep going for a full 90 minutes. He has come in and provided a spark for us."

Stuart Parnaby was stretchered off after 40 minutes following an innocuous challenge from Leeds' Raul Bravo.

The young right-back, who only signed a new four-year contract on Friday, has suffered a hamstring injury and it is unclear how long he will be out for.

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