GARETH SOUTHGATE feels the rest of the Premiership will pay Middlesbrough more respect if a UEFA Cup place is secured through the league - but he won't be leading a celebratory lap of honour if seventh is achieved.

A sell-out crowd will be in attendance at the Riverside Stadium today eagerly anticipating a mouthwatering match-up between Boro and Tottenham, as both sides look to gain the edge in the race for that final European place.

After captaining the side in the club's maiden UEFA Cup adventure - courtesy of winning last season's Carling Cup - Southgate is keen to make sure he leads the side into the competition again next year.

And the former England defender believes if Boro can earn the right to compete against the rest of the continent by virtue of a high league place then that will count for more than qualifying by winning the league cup.

But Southgate - who finished fourth in his first season at Aston Villa in 1995/96 - insists a realistic view needs to be taken if seventh is earned, pointing to the need for a determination to strive for a much higher finish in the future.

"I finished fourth at Villa. You didn't run round the field delighted at fourth back then," said Southgate, who never finished outside the top eight during six years at Villa Park before moving to Teesside in a £6.5m deal in the summer of 2001.

"Football is about winning trophies. It would be fantastic if we finish seventh but I will not be running around the pitch if we do it. I find it strange there is so much hype about finishing seventh.

"Let's get real here. Manchester United won't be celebrating if they get third or fourth. We will be pleased, that is the level we are at, but let's not pat ourselves on the back too much."

After tasting European football for the first time in the club's history this year when they reached the last 16 of the UEFA Cup, Southgate knows exactly what it would mean to the supporters to witness a repeat.

The importance is highlighted by the way fans have clamoured for tickets for today's clash with seventh-placed Spurs and next week's trip to ninth-placed Manchester City.

But the game with City could count for little if Boro lose at home to Tottenham and Southgate claims McClaren's men are still in the driving seat with two games to go and both rivals to play.

"It's nice to be involved and having something to play for at this time of the season. For the last four seasons we haven't. If Spurs beat us we are out of it. I think it will go to the last day of the season," he said.

"Winning the cup was a fantastic day, the way you feel and the celebrations are special. It is a far more enjoyable way to qualify for Europe.

"But, in terms of being judged as a team, you do it over 38 games rather than five or six, and it is a far more recognisable achievement in my mind. If you finish second in the Championship and go up, the team that goes up in the play-offs will have a much more enjoyable high. But the second team has done more."

Tottenham's 5-1 drubbing of Aston Villa last weekend has edged the Londoners ahead of Boro on goal difference but that could all change after today's encounter.

Financially the UEFA Cup run was not particularly rewarding for the club this season but the status of Boro was taken on to the next level just by being involved - highlighted by the arrivals of Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, Ray Parlour, Mark Viduka, Michael Reiziger and Bolo Zenden last season.

And the prospect of further strengthening in the summer is the reason why Southgate believes qualification this time around would be beneficial. "It is too dramatic to say the future rests on these two games. The club will still be focused on going forward," he said.

"It is a two-match season. It is great. They are the games you want to play in. It would strengthen the manager's hand, certainly. European qualification enables you to attract the calibre of players we brought in.

"There is no-one we are in danger of losing if we don't qualify but we wouldn't be able to attract the top-drawer players we will if we can qualify."

Regardless of whether Boro secure seventh place or not, Southgate insists improvements have to be made next season if the club are to move forward.

And the honest defender said: "We've conceded too many goals this season. That is down to injuries and the way we have played, which has been a lot more open. It means we score more and concede more. We are the fourth highest scorers and 11th best defensively. That's not good enough.

"Spurs will be a different proposition on Saturday. They've brought in an incredible amount of players during the season. They are very different to the teams that have been here in the past. There are a lot of exciting young players at Spurs and I will have to watch out for Jermain Defoe. He's an exceptionally good striker and a real poacher."

* Boro are advising season ticket holders they must bring their Red and White Books to today's sell-out game against Tottenham.

There will not be the opportunity for duplicate tickets to be issued to those supporters who lose or forget their season ticket books.

No tickets will be available for purchase on the day as the clash is completely sold out.

Read more about Middlesbrough here.