Teenage goalkeeper Jason Steele is set for a shock first team elevation for the start of Middlesbrough's new season.

The England youth keeper, 16, is set to step up to the Boro first team squad because both Mark Schwarzer and Brad Jones are playing for Australia in the Asian Cup.

Boro boss Gareth Southgate said: "It's not ideal to have two of your goalkeepers in the same international squad, playing in the middle of the summer.

"But we have been generous towards the Australian FA and we have tried to help them as much as we can.

"I wouldn't want to stand in the way of Schwarzer and Jones or any other of our players because we know what playing international football means to them.

"It's still not a perfect situation for clubs in Europe when you have a situation where FIFA do not seem to have developed any uniformity. The calendar is very strange when you have competitions in Asia, and Africa, and the Copa America, which don't fit in with the rest of the world calendar.

"But the absence of Mark and Brad in the first few friendlies gives a great opportunity for Ross Turnbull to prove himself.

"We've also got Jason Steele, who played very well for England at youth level recently.

"When I was attending my coaching course at Lilleshall, the coaches couldn't speak too highly of the way that Jason had played for England.

"It was great to hear and so he will come with us on our training trip to Austria and have the opportunity to experience first team squad level."