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MIDDLESBROUGH v WEST BROM - BORO BOSS WARY OF RUSHING JOHNSON
Middlesbrough boss Gareth Southgate has told FA Cup hero Adam Johnson to remain patient as he waits for his chance.
The 19-year-old winger came off the bench on Tuesday night to score a match-winning penalty in the dramatic shoot-out victory over Bristol City which booked the Teessiders their fifth-round clash with West Brom.
In just his eighth appearance of the season to date, Johnson's contribution helped to turn a 1-0 deficit into a 2-1 lead before defender Jamie McCombe's equaliser took the tie to penalties.
His reward is likely to be a seat on the bench at best at the Riverside Stadium when Baggies boss Tony Mowbray returns to his hometown club, but Southgate is confident his time will come.
He said: "We know the talent he has got and it is frustrating for him not to get a run in the side, but we have got to bring him through very carefully.
"But he is an exceptionally gifted young player and we know he has got a very big future.
"It is just a case of nursing him through and trying to involve him at the right times."
But if Johnson is part of the future at the Riverside, it is the present which will occupy Southgate and his players this weekend as they attempt to ultimately go one better than they did last year when they reached the FA Cup semi-finals.
Defeat by West Ham at Villa Park denied them a trip to Cardiff's Millennium Stadium, but they are desperate to make the showcase final this time around with the manager, who played in the last Wembley final, keen to have a say in the first back at English football's spiritual home.
Southgate said: "I said to the lads before the game on Tuesday they were four games away from a Wembley final. That is three now - six if we go to replays every time," he added with a smile.
"There is a fantastic incentive for both teams on Saturday."
Southgate will hope to be able to call upon both England defender Jonathan Woodgate and Argentinian midfielder Julio Arca, who missed Tuesday's replay through injury.
Woodgate is battling a hamstring problem, while Arca is recovering after turning an ankle at Chelsea last weekend.
However, striker Mark Viduka, whose introduction as a substitute in midweek changed the game, seems certain to return to the starting line-up.
The 31-year-old Australian is relishing the excitement of the competition, although he knows he and his team-mates can take nothing for granted against a side pushing hard for promotion to the Barclays Premiership.
He said: "I love it, love it. I love every minute of it.
"It is a big game coming up. Tuesday's was a tough game which took a lot out of us, but we have got another big one against West Brom."
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