Middlesbrough are not as doomed for relegation as they may seem, according to former goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer.

Boro are currently six points from safety with only seven matches remaining, a run which includes Arsenal, Manchester City, and trips to Chelsea and Liverpool.

They host the Gunners next Monday knowing that they need to salvage anything they can if they are to see a change in fortunes.

Schwarzer, who spent 11 years at the Riverside Stadium, was part of the Leicester City squad that clawed their way out of relegation in 2014/15.

And the 44-year-old believes that Boro can replicate the Foxes’ great escape.

(Matthew Lewis/Getty Images)

“Nobody expected Leicester to get out of the predicament they were in,” he said.

“Middlesbrough are in a similar situation, where they’ve almost been written off and the pressure is off a bit in that regard.

“But they definitely still have an opportunity, without a doubt.

“If they can get that one win, the confidence will lift immensely. Do that quickly and they give themselves every chance to stay up.

“I know the Boro fans and it’s important that they really get behind the team for the last couple of games, to show that united front.

“Ultimately, the supporters want to see that fight, that grit and determination, the players playing with their heart on their sleeves. If the fans see that I know they will back them all the way.”

Despite sitting pretty in tenth place in the Premier League table, Watford midfielder Etienne Capoue is fearful of relegation and believes the next two matches could help define their season.

The Hornets host relegation strugglers Swansea City on Saturday knowing that three points would take them to the much sought after 40 points, seen by many as the threshold for survival.

Watford go into the game on the back of two straight home victories over West Brom and Sunderland but did suffer a crushing 4-0 defeat at Tottenham on Sunday.

Photo by Richard Heathcote/Getty Images

Swansea, meanwhile, sit 18th on 28 points and are two points away from escaping the drop zone.

And French midfielder Capoue believes that the Hornets’ next two fixtures – they travel to Hull City the following weekend – will be critical in determining their final Premier League placing.

“We have big games in the next two,” said Capoue. “We want to stay in the Premier League and get a lot of points as soon as possible.

“We need to be focused because next week will be like a final.

“You never know here – we took six points in the last two games (before Tottenham) and we want to keep going and forget this game.”

Bournemouth defender Steve Cook said he relishes playing against the top quality sides in the Premier League.

The Cherries lost 3-1 to leaders Chelsea at the Vitality Stadium at the weekend, and face an equally tough trip to Tottenham Hotspur in the early kick-off at White Hart Lane on Saturday.

Spurs secured a sixth win on the spin with a convincing 4-0 win over Watford, but Cook will be hoping to keep out the likes of Harry Kane, Dele Alli and Son Heung-min when the sides meet in north London.

And rather than get downbeat after the defeat to Chelsea, 25-year-old Cook insists footballers live for the big occasions against the best sides in the country.

Photo by Warren Little/Getty Images

“This is why we’re playing football, to play against these top quality sides,” said Cook. “It is tough physically and mentally but this is what we’re paid to do.

“The good thing is that the next game’s round the corner and hopefully we can put this right and move back up the table.

“We’ll be working through Spurs’ strengths and weaknesses next week but before that we’ll recover after playing against a very tough side.

“You learn every game. Hopefully I can keep improving when I play and that’s the only way you are going to improve and learn.”

Stoke City fans need to be patient with misfiring striker Saido Berahino, according to Mark Hughes – who insists the forward can only be judged next season.

The Potters snapped up the highly-rated Berahino from West Brom in January, but the 23-year-old is yet to find the net in nine Potters appearances.

Stoke have struggled in recent weeks, scoring just twice in their last five games as they drift towards a relegation scrap.

Photo by Gareth Copley/Getty Images

And fans have taken their frustrations out on Berahino, a symbol of Hughes’ broken regime which has attracted much criticism this season.

But the manager remains calm ahead of Saturday’s match against Hull and has full faith that Berahino will come good for the Potters.

“Next season is when we feel Saido will have the maximum impact,” said Hughes.

“He hasn’t played a lot of football and is still getting up to speed, it’s fair to say.

“But these games between now and the end of the season will be invaluable in terms of him understanding what we are about and what he needs to do.

“We want to get him scoring and get him off and running – that will be good for him. Then we’ll see a marked difference next season in terms of his impact.”

Winger Matt Phillips wants to help West Bromwich Albion finish the Premier League season strongly after returning from a six-week lay-off with a hamstring injury.

It wasn’t a happy return for the Scotland international, however, as he came off the bench for the second half of the Baggies’ 2-0 defeat at Watford last Tuesday.

Phillips, who has scored five goals and assisted eight this season, then started the 1-0 home loss against Southampton on Saturday.

With a chance of equalling their highest-ever Premier League finish in their hands, eighth-placed West Brom will be keen to ensure those back-to-back defeats don’t lead to their season tailing off.

Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images

“On a personal level it was great for me to be back out on the pitch playing again,” said Phillips.

“It’s been five or six weeks since I have played so it was important to get through an hour or so against Southampton.

“It was good to be able to complete 60 minutes but it was obviously a disappointing result on Saturday.

“There’s plenty of time to recover ahead of the Liverpool game on Sunday and I am hoping to have a good week in training and then push on.

“We’ve got six games left now and the boys are all so determined to make sure we get as many points on the board as possible.”

Swansea City assistant manager Nigel Gibbs is keeping his sentimentality muted ahead of a return to his former club Watford this weekend.

Gibbs was a product of the Hornets’ youth system and spent his entire 19-year-career at Vicarage Road.

He remained with the club as a coach following his retirement and took caretaker charge in 2005.

But he is now at Swansea, who currently sit 18th, two points from safety and without a win in five matches.

They travel to Watford on Saturday knowing that an upturn in form is essential if they wish to maintain their Premier League status.

Photo by Athena Pictures/Getty Images

And with stakes as high as they can be for the Swans, Gibbs is fully focused on his current club.

“I have been back there a couple of times but it will always mean a lot for me to go back to somewhere where I spent so much of my career as a player and a coach,” he said.

“It was such a long association and I have many memories from my time at Watford that I will always hold dear, and there will be a few members of staff around who I know and it will be good to see them.

“But it has to be all about Swansea City for me, and it is about getting a result. That’s all it can be about.

“Nobody gives you anything in this league, a victory in the Premier League is massive and you have to work hard, be organised and put in the work during the week.

“If you get the performance right you have a chance.

“We have fallen below par and we have to get back to it, we are confident the players can do it and we have a chance if we can.”

Southampton manager Claude Puel is in confident mood ahead of Manchester City’s visit to St Mary’s on Saturday.

Saints will go into the game chasing a third straight league victory, after wins against Crystal Palace and West Bromwich Albion in the past seven days.

Southampton are currently ninth in the Premier League with 40 points, while City are fourth on 61.

Puel’s side earned a creditable 1-1 draw at the Etihad Stadium when the sides met earlier in the season.

And the Saints boss is confident his side can upset the apple cart once more, despite the talent at City boss Pep Guardiola’s disposal.

Photo by Alex Livesey/Getty Images

“We know the next game against Manchester City is a strong challenge, a great team, but it’s better to play against Manchester City after two wins, as it gives us confidence,” Puel said.

“We play at home and, with the support of the fans, we can do fantastic work against them.

“It was a good result for this week, but it’s not finished. It is just the start of the run-in.
“We have eight games now and it’s very important to stay with this good focus, concentration and rhythm.
“For example, [West Brom] was for me the same as the last game against Crystal Palace, with a good consistency the whole game and this is very important.

“We played very well in the first half when we had the ball, and second half against their long ball we defended very well. All the details were important to resist and preserve this result.”

Goalkeeper Eldin Jakupovic has warned his Hull City team-mates that they cannot solely rely on their home form if they are to survive this Premier League season.

Hull are currently one place and two points above the drop zone, sitting 17^th on 30 points – two ahead of Swansea.

And the reason Hull are just above the drop zone has been their form at the KCOM Stadium, having gone unbeaten in their last seven Premier League home games, winning their last three.

However, on the flip side the Tigers have won just once away from home all season, this coming with a 2-0 success at Swansea in just the second game of the season.

And 32-year-old Jakupovic knows Hull must improve on the road, with a trip to Stoke fast approaching this Saturday.

“We have to just keep going and take points away from home,” Jakupovic said. “We have three more home games but the next match is important for us.

“We could win all three home games and get to 39 points. Would that be enough? Maybe, but we need away points.

“Every point will be massive, not just for us but for Palace and Swansea, and everybody.

“We have to just keep going, try not to think about the table too much. We have to be cool and play our game.”

It took a goal of pure quality for Liverpool to beat Stoke City on Saturday afternoon; that was the view of Georginio Wijnaldum anyway.

The Reds had trailed at half-time to Jon Walters’ opener at the bet365 Stadium, but roared themselves back in to the Champions League hunt thanks to Phillipe Coutinho and Roberto Firmino efforts.

Both the Brazilians had come off the bench at half-time to aid Jurgen Klopp’s cause, with the latter rifling an effort home to lift the visiting supporters to their feet.

That kept the Anfield outfit six points clear of fifth-place Manchester United, with Wijnaldum left purring at the impact the two had on a game which had seemed to be slipping from their grasp.

(Photo by Matthew Ashton – AMA/Getty Images)

“[They were] really good goals, especially the second from Roberto. The way he made the goal was quality, pure quality!” said the Dutchman.

“I don’t think it was only because of the substitutions, but of course Phil and Roberto made a big difference. They scored the goals and they helped the team to win the game.

“It is normal people will say it’s because of the substitutions but I think it’s also because the whole team worked hard to get a win.

“It’s a really big win, and also because we dropped points on Wednesday against Bournemouth. We wanted to do better in the next game and it was a good game.”

Defender Ben Chilwell believes Leicester City will be able to quickly put their defeat at Everton behind them, with the first leg of their Champions League quarter final against Atletico Madrid on the horizon.

The Foxes’ 4-2 defeat at Goodison Park on Sunday was their first loss since manager Craig Shakespeare took charge in February, following the sacking of Claudio Ranieri.

Shakespeare made five changes to his starting line-up for that match with the trip to the Estadio Vicente Calderon possibly in mind, with 20-year-old Chilwell one of the players brought in.

Leicester will be aiming to defy the odds yet again on Wednesday, after the Premier League champions came from behind to knock out Sevilla in the last 16 and Chilwell insists the Everton loss won’t dent their confidence.

(Michael Regan/Getty Images)

Chilwell said: “We’ve got the Champions League game on Wednesday which is another massive match for the club.

“Everyone is confident going into it even though we lost on Sunday. We’ll go into it with the same form we’ve had previous to the Everton game.

“It was great to get six wins before this so obviously it would have been nice to carry it on, but Shakey [Shakespeare] rotated the squad. He gave a few players the chance and obviously rested a few of the players for the Champions League game.

“Hopefully on Wednesday everyone will come back fit and fresh and everyone that’s involved, whether they start or come off the bench, will be ready to get the win.”