Fulham remind North-East fans what they're missing (From The Northern Echo)

Fulham remind North-East fans what they're missing

11:36am Sunday 21st March 2010 in

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WHEN will European football return to the North-East? Given the positioning of all three of the region’s leading clubs this season, it is difficult to imagine a Europa Cup run is on the horizon, never mind chasing a Champions League dream.

Middlesbrough fans must have choked on their dinner’s on Thursday night. After returning home from work the sight of Fulham coming back from the brink to defeat Italian giants Juventus must have brought the memories flooding back.

It is only four years ago in May that Steve McClaren led Boro out in Eindhoven for the UEFA Cup final after historic victories in the knock-out stages against Steaua Bucharest, Basle, Roma and Stuttgart.

To have rubbed shoulders with such European greats and emerged with a place in the final against Sevilla was a mark of the tremendous work McClaren did during his five-year reign at the Riverside Stadium.

He might never have been loved by the Teesside public, his work rarely appreciated, but in the subsequent few years the respect for the job McClaren did has grown considerably.

It was the success he had in Europe and in the Carling Cup which ultimately led to the Football Association handing him the England job after Sven Goran Eriksson.

So there was a sense of history repeating itself when Roy Hodgson was being talked of as a future successor to Fabio Capello in the aftermath of Fulham’s euphoric night against Juventus at Craven Cottage.

The Europa League (formerly UEFA Cup) might not carry the same weight as being successful in the Champions League, but it still clearly makes people sit up and take notice.

And it is with that in mind that Boro, Newcastle and Sunderland should all still harbour hopes of qualifying for such a competition.

It might not bring with it the monetary rewards on offer in the Premier League or the Champions League, but it would still mean everything for the club’s fans and reputation to enjoy a sustained run in Europe.

When one of the North-East’s big three will eventually return to the continental stage is another matter entirely, although Steve Bruce would like to think that a push for the top seven is not too far away.

It is not going to be this season but, with the correct adjustments to the Sunderland squad in the summer, there should be an eye on trying to bridge the gap next season.

By that time Newcastle United will be back in the Premier League and looking to make progress towards the top half again themselves.

As for Middlesbrough, August is sure to be more Championship than Champions League and more Barnsley than Basle.