Smoggies Set To Give Boro A Backlash!
Last updated : 12 March 2008 By Footy Mad - Editor
The club's supporters turned out in force at the Riverside Stadium on Sunday, but booed their team at half-time and on the final whistle following Cardiff City's comfortable 2-0 win.
Now, like Newcastle and Sunderland, Boro face a relegation dogfight and Southgate fears the fans could turn against them.
Southgate: "The easiest thing is for the fans and the players to fall out of love with each other.
"The fans can fall out of love with us at the moment, but we can't fall out of love with the fans because they came in their thousands, they gave us fantastic support and we let them down on the day.
"You have to remind everybody that it is those supporters who pay the wages that we earn and that any criticism that comes our way we have to take on board because when you pay to go to watch something you have the right to criticise it.
"That's been the case forever, not just now when the wages are as big as they are.
"I did think it was important we remembered that responsibility.
"The irony is, had we gone out to Bristol City in the third round, there wouldn't have been too many eyebrows raised.
"But we get to a quarter-final and because we have raised the expectation levels - and we ourselves expected to progress - then it has a more damning effect on the club."