TWENTY months ago Steve McClaren inherited an ageing, deflated Middlesbrough squad that had the look of a Nationwide League side.

But when Boro take to the field at the Stadium of Light this afternoon the proof of the massive transformation job McClaren has undertaken will be there for all to see.

Mark Schwarzer and Joseph-Desire Job are expected to be the only two players on show today who started Bryan Robson's last match in charge when both he and Terry Venables waved goodbye to the Riverside.

And many predict even Job's future employment on Teesside is on the line with Juninho's first appearance of the season only a matter of days, rather than weeks away.

Schwarzer, though, is one player whom the Boro boss aims to keep hold of.

The Aussie goalkeeper has shown again this season that he is up there with the best in the Premiership and his form has alerted champions Arsenal, among others.

Ugo Ehiogu - still recovering from fractured ribs and a punctured lung - is one of the few quality players Robson brought to Teesside, but his best days only arrived after McClaren teamed him up with Gareth Southgate at the heart of the defence.

Colin Cooper is another who has survived the cull of Robson's remnants. Despite being Boro's oldest player, the 35-year-old remains very much a part of McClaren's squad system.

His versatility is something that McClaren is more than aware of, and it is little wonder the former England man has been kept part of the playing staff.

But - apart from fellow thirty-somethings Ehiogu, Southgate, Tony Vidmar and Mark Crossley - McClaren has mainly tried to inject some much-needed young blood into his side.

One of Bryan Robson's biggest failings during his last days on Teesside was his inability to put his trust in the Academy which he helped set up.

McClaren, however, has shown he is not afraid to pin his faith in the teenage talent at his disposal.

England youth internationals Stuart Parnaby and David Murphy, as well as homegrown Robbie Stockdale, are all competing to start on Wearside.

But it has not just been the emergence of players coming through the ranks at Boro, the manager's buying motto has been very much 'Buy Young, Buy British'.

In January he chose to pay good money, a fee that will rise to £7.5m in April, for three Englishmen whose careers are still in their infancy.

Newcastle chief Sir Bobby Robson turned 70 this week and new Boro boys Chris Riggott, Malcolm Christie and Michael Ricketts can only just boast that number of years between them.

But that is further testament to McClaren's gamble on youth, something he has picked up from Sir Alex Ferguson at Manchester United.

Some will point to the imminent departure of Croatian Alen Boksic as the final nail in the Robbo-era coffin.

Boksic has plainly failed to live up to his world-class billing since Robson paid £2.5m for his services from Lazio.

He has flattered to deceive and is unlikely to return to Teesside - both parties are trying to agree a settlement figure over the player's contract.

And when that fee is finally agreed the striker will follow Dean Windass out of the North-East, and it won't be long before Allan Johnston and Carlos Marinelli - both currently on loan at Sheffield Wednesday and Torino respectively - depart on more permanent deals.

However, regardless of whether you are a fan of McClaren's philosophy or not, there is a well-known adage that quite rightly points out 'the league table doesn't lie'.

And with Boro sitting in an unimpressive 14th position in the top-flight there is still an awful long way to go before we will see whether McClaren's work has been a real success.