OPTIMISTIC boss Steve McClaren has reconsidered Middlesbrough's targets for the current campaign, and insisted a Champions League place is still up for grabs.

After a disastrous start to 2005 - when Boro failed to win any of their first five league matches - they have managed to redress the balance in the past nine days picking up four points from two games in February.

It has forced McClaren, who had started to play down talk of a place in the top four, into a rethink, and he believes that either Middlesbrough or Bolton have a strong chance of sneaking in to European football's premier club competition.

Everton and Liverpool both lost on Saturday, to Chelsea and Birmingham respectively, allowing those below to close the gap.

Middlesbrough are seven points adrift of the Toffees with Bolton just a point behind the Teessiders - a sign of better times at two clubs who have struggled to break into the top six before this season.

McClaren claims his team, bereft of a number of key players through injury and suspension, are proving how far they have come in the past 12 months.

"Look at Bolton and Middlesbrough and we are both unfashionable clubs," said McClaren. "In the past we have gone in and out of the Premier League. The work that we are doing at this club is the same as what Sam Allardyce is trying to do at Bolton.

"From our point of view we are still in the top six and in Europe. We are trying to break the tradition and establish ourselves in the top eight. We are going nicely but there's a long way to go.

"Moving from 12th to the top six is difficult - just like the gap from first to fourth is enormous. We are ambitious and top six is our aim - with fourth possible.

"It wasn't realistic at the beginning of the season but we have been there for two thirds of the season now so it's realistic.

"It's going to be hard to get fourth and we know that."

McClaren can now call on Ray Parlour and Bolo Zenden for Thursday's trip to Austria and the UEFA Cup tie with AK Grazer, and the manager is delighted to see his options increasing.

"We can't give up," said McClaren. "If we had a full squad and everyone fit it might be different, but what we have at the moment is great spirit. At the moment we have to grind our results. Hopefully we will be in a position to challenge."

One of those to perform well at Bolton was Darlington-born midfielder James Morrison.

The teenager, on duty with England Under-19s last week, had a late fitness test on a shin injury and was asked to play in a three man midfield.

McClaren said: "Morrison was terrific. For an 18-year-old to come in like that again and help hold the midfield together was tremendous. He is a real prospect. He helped the team a great deal considering we had Bolo and Ray out."

* George Boateng will have another scan on the broken toe that has kept him out of action since December 18. The Dutch midfielder hopes to be back in action within three weeks.

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