STEVE McClaren has been given a vote of confidence by Bundesliga club Wolfsburg and will still be their coach when training resumes on January 2.

The former Boro boss remains under pressure after the Wolves disappointingly finished the first half of the season in 13th position and were knocked out of the DFBPokal by second division side Energie Cottbus.

However, after crisis talks yesterday, Wolfsburg’s managing director Dieter Hoeness announced that Mc- Claren would be remaining in charge, but warned he expects major improvements during the second half of the season.

‘‘We have got some cleaning up to do,’’ said Hoeness.

‘‘We told the team eight weeks ago after the defeat in Nurnberg that their basic attitude must change.

‘‘We did not get a reaction so now we have got to react.

The fans do not deserve to see what they are seeing on the pitch, particularly given the exemplary way in which they supported us against Cottbus.

‘‘We expect the coaches to act consequentially and to punish bad behaviour both on and off the field.’’ McClaren arrived in the summer to inherit a team which had failed to build on their Bundesliga title success under Felix Magath in 2009.

Both Armin Veh and Lorenz-Gunther Kostner struggled to match the expectations last season and McClaren, who had led Twente to a surprise Dutch title in 2010, was hired as the first English coach in the Bundesliga.

The Wolves started with a slightly unfortunate 2-1 defeat at Bayern Munich and that result set the tone for the first half of the season.

They threw away a threegoal lead to lose 4-3 at home to Mainz in their next game and have only won three times in front of their own fans this season.

A run of six straight draws to end 2010 has left them with just 19 points from 17 games.

They are currently ten points adrift of fifth-placed Bayern Munich and a place in Europe next season, which was the minimum aim Mc- Claren set when he arrived in the summer.

McClaren flew back to England for the festive period yesterday, although he will be expected back in Lower Saxony earlier than originally planned to try and turn around a delicate situation.