Gareth Southgate made his last appearance as a professional player in the UEFA Cup final as Middlesbrough took on Sevilla. Southgate played a central role in taking Boro to their first ever European final and it was somewhat cruel that in his last outing he was part of a side which lost 4-0.

He would take over as manager at the club later that summer, however. Steve McClaren's impressive feat of helping Boro into that final had helped persuade the Football Association that he was the man to take over the England hot-seat. The Watford-born Southgate was his replacement.

As a player Southgate was a reliable centre-back and defensive lynchpin for the three clubs he represented: Crystal Palace, Aston Villa and Middlesbrough, although he regularly played in midfield for the former. An even tempered individual and a crowd favourite with all three clubs, he captained every team that he played for including England for whom he won 57 caps after making his debut against Portugal in December 1995. Southgate was a model of consistency as a player and now has a promising managerial career ahead of him.

The first official match of that career on 19th August 2006 proved something of a rude awakening. Boro led newly promoted Reading 2-0 thanks to first-half goals from Stewart Downing and Yakubu but Steve Coppell's side hit back through Dave Kitson, Steve Sidwell and Leroy Lita to win 3-2.
Southgate led Boro to a 12th place finish that season and also guided them into the FA Cup quarter finals. They lost 1-0 to Manchester United in a replay at Old Trafford after forcing a 2-2 draw in the first match.

His second season in charge was also respectable. The Teesiders finished 13th in the Barclays Premier League and again reached the quarter finals of the FA Cup. Southgate spent a club record fee on striker Afonso Alves and will be hoping that he has acquired a 30-goal-a-season man.

The highest point of the season was arguably a 2-1 win over Arsenal at the Riverside Stadium in December, as Southgate's ploy of continuous pressing paid dividends.

Southgate is currently working towards his UEFA Pro Licence. He will be hoping to take what he has learned on the FA Coaching courses back to Middlesbrough.