THERE will be no Wembley trip for Middlesbrough’s players and fans next month after a quarter-final tie which Manchester City deserved to win at the Riverside Stadium.

Boro, struggling for goals and confidence in the fight for survival in the Premier League, were determined and competed to make things difficult at times for Pep Guardiola’s men.

But Manchester City’s greater attacking quality proved the big difference on an afternoon when Aitor Karanka’s hopes of a welcome boost for his team and squad never arrived.

Karanka must have feared the worst when City took the lead inside three minutes when David Silva popped up in the six yard box.

But Middlesbrough fought to make a game of it and had chances of their own, until a second half when Guardiola’s team could have racked up a big score had it not been for goalkeeper Brad Guzan.

The crucial second did arrive in the 67th minute when Sergio Aguero’s predatory instincts were evident again as he turned in Leroy Sane’s perfect delivery.

There were still openings for Middlesbrough, just not enough. Had Middlesbrough, who only started with Alvaro Negredo and Gaston Ramirez on the bench, not sat deep and invited the early pressure then things might have been different at the break.

But Manchester City were in front with a little more than two minutes on the clock. A move down the left saw the ball worked back to Yaya Toure on the edge of the Middlesbrough box.

The Ivorian midfielder picked a clever pass over Fabio da Silva for Pablo Zabaleta to volley across the six yard area where Raheem Sterling missed the first chance and Silva converted the second.

For quarter of an hour or so it was all too easy for City, who looked like they were playing in a training match by spraying the ball around.

But Middlesbrough found their feet for half an hour. Rudy Gestede, who had to leave the field moments later with hamstring trouble, had two headers go close and that gave the home side the belief they could threaten Claudio Bravo’s goal.

The first of Gestede’s headers from the impressive Grant Leadbitter’s free-kick was initially stopped by Bravo and then cleared off the line by Zabaleta.

Manchester City’s array of exceptional attacking talent meant they still created openings before the break, with Toure going close with a header and the home side having to defend well.

But Middlesbrough, whose spirit initially was epitomised by Leadbitter in the middle, also had their openings and one of those saw Cristhian Stuani head straight at Bravo from Marten de Roon’s dangerous delivery.

After the restart, though, the men in the light blue shirts wanted to get the job done. They had the chances to before the hour had even come up on the clock.

Silva had already hammered an effort over the bar from de Bruyne’s centre when Guzan, the Middlesbrough goalkeeper, turned an Aguero flick from Sterling’s cross against the foot of the post.

Silva was unable to convert the rebound. Guzan also had to deny Sane at his near post after a neat link up of play down the left, with Middlesbrough hanging on and finding the pressure relentless at times in the second period.

There were two more low stops from Silva and Sane that prompted the home support to chant the American’s name.

Guzan was finally beaten moments after Ramirez was introduced in a bid to spark Boro back into life in the final third. A quick exchange of passes created the space for Sane down the left, clear of Antonio Barragan.

Sane saw Aguero’s run to the near post where he was picked out and the predatory South American was on hand to convert ahead of Fabio’s attempts to block with 23 minutes remaining.

After that Manchester City could have had plenty more, with Guzan asked to show his strong hands time and time again.

Middlesbrough kept plugging away, but the visitors were at a different level to seal a place in the last four. Teesside can focus on a relegation fight once more.