Middlesbrough boss Gareth Southgate insists their youth policy was the right way to go, despite their likely relegation this season.

He told the Evening Gazette: "Financially I am not sure that we had any other option.

"It's very difficult for the clubs in the bottom half of the Premier League and it is getting more difficult all the time.

"You have to be aware of what is going on around you and you have to make sure that you are dealing with it.

"You can try the all or nothing approach or you try to build something in the long term and grow a club that is something sustainable.

"If we don't stay in this division then it might not be the disaster that some people think it will be.

"Staying in, from a financial point of view, I am not sure where that would leave us.

"But we are desperate to stay in for sporting reasons and to give our fans the success that they desire."