A RESOLUTE Steve McClaren last night insisted Abel Xavier's failed drugs test had not hindered Middlesbrough's preparations for the start of the UEFA Cup group-stage, and claimed his players were determined to put this week's dramatic events firmly behind them.

Xavier will be a notable absentee when Boro face Grasshoppers in Zurich's Hardturm Stadium this evening after he tested positive for a banned substance following the club's last European outing.

The Portugal international's subsequent worldwide ban has dominated the build-up to tonight's game, with Middlesbrough's place in the UEFA Cup initially coming under threat in the aftermath of Xavier's misdemeanour.

FIFA have allayed all fears on that score, but last month's positive test has still overshadowed the rest of the Boro squad's preparations for their second successive group-stage campaign.

McClaren admits that losing Xavier's services has been a major blow but, while he is unable to discuss the matter fully until the 32-year-old's B-sample has been examined by UEFA, he is adamant his players will put events to one side tonight.

"I don't think it will have any effect on the side at all," said the Boro boss. "We are all professionals and it is just like somebody having a bad injury.

"It's like saying an injured player is out for a while and we will have to cope with it. That is how we will treat it.

"Players are resilient creatures and they just get on with it. Abel has the full support of the club and he has protested his innocence vehemently.

"I have spoken to him (yesterday) and he is in fairly good spirits. He is putting a case together with his lawyer at the moment and we will hopefully be getting some results next week."

As if this week's drugs storm has not been traumatic enough, McClaren has also had to deal with the fall-out from last weekend's bore draw with Portsmouth.

The Riverside faithful were quick to air their disgust at his controversial 4-5-1 formation, booing the Teessiders off at both the half and full-time whistles of Saturday's game.

By switching to a three-man attack during the second period, McClaren seemed to respond to their criticism.

But, rather than accepting he made a mistake, the England number two has maintained he was right to stick with the lone-striker system that had paid dividends against both Aston Villa and Arsenal.

And, after his negative approach was widely panned in the wake of Saturday's draw, McClaren revealed how much pain the criticism had caused.

"Have I been hurt by the criticism? Yes, I have," he said. "I never want to be accused of being negative. How many top teams now play with one up front? You can go through them all and they all do. It just didn't work for us in the first half on Saturday.

"There's been a lot of talk about the performances at home - a lot of negativity - and there was a lot of criticism on Saturday for our supposedly negative approach.

"In the first half, we played with one up. But I defend that because we've played one up three times this season and we've won two and drawn one of those games, scoring six goals in the process. It is not a negative system.

"There's no way we go out on a Saturday and say we want to play negatively, or say let's go for a draw here. I can understand the frustrations, because we share them, but don't believe we are delighted with the situation. We're not."

Boro's home form this term has left a lot to be desired but, away from the Riverside, they boast just one defeat in five games.

This month's 3-2 win at Aston Villa underlined the counter-attacking potential in McClaren's side, as well as the kind of resilience and resolve that has been largely absent on home soil.

"The away form shows an attitude and character within the side," claimed the Middlesbrough manager. "If you go away and stand up to whatever is thrown at you, and get results, you are on the right track.

"We've got that, that's our platform, and we need to translate that at home, which we're not doing at the moment. We know that, once we get that right, anything could happen."

Given the contrasting form, it may be to Boro's benefit that their Group D campaign gets under way on Swiss soil tonight.

It is certainly to their advantage that they do not have to travel to either Dnipro or Litex Lovech - two of their other opponents in the group - and that their only other away game is in the relatively benign surroundings of Alkmaar.

McClaren said: "We got nine points last season and won the group - I think four or five can sometimes get you through. If you win the first one, it unquestionably puts you in a great position."

Centre-half Ugo Ehiogu has failed to shake off a groin problem in time for tonight's game, so teenager Matthew Bates could feature should McClaren opt to rest either Gareth Southgate or Chris Riggott. Xavier's place at right-back will be taken by Stuart Parnaby while, for all of McClaren's protestations in favour of a one-man attack, it would be no surprise to see Mark Viduka partnering Jimmy-Floyd Hasselbaink, with Yakubu dropping to the bench.

Likely line-ups - Grasshoppers (4-4-2): Coltorti, Schwegler, Mitreski, Stepanovs, Jaggy, Chihab, Cabanas, Renggli, Dos Santos, Eduardo, Rogerio.

Middlesbrough (4-4-2): Schwarzer, Parnaby, Southgate, Riggott, Pogatetz, Mendieta, Boateng, Doriva, Queudrue, Hasselbaink, Viduka.