Gareth Southgate has won 57 England caps and lifted the League Cup at Wembley and the Millennium Stadium for different clubs.

There have been plenty of highs for the 34-year-old to enjoy even if the really big trophies haven’t come his way.

With Middlesbrough chasing a Champions League spot this season and into the last 32 of the UEFA Cup, this could be the most successful season of the Boro captain’s career.

"I had a fourth, two fifths and a sixth at Villa – that is as high as I’ve finished," he says.

"We are fifth at the moment, four points clear of the teams below us and through into the next round of Europe. But we’re still not really satisfied.

"I suppose that is the level of expectation that is starting to be generated at Middlesbrough and it could well end up the best season of my career for a club."

Boro are involved in the UEFA Cup knockout draw on Friday after beating Partizan Belgrade 3-0 at The Riverside on Wednesday to top their qualifying group. The likes of Ajax, Benfica and Valencia are also involved in the competition but in a sense Southgate is making up for lost time in terms of winning more trophies.

"You always hope you will be involved in championship run-ins, for whatever reasons that hasn’t happened in my career.

"I am philosophical about it now and know I am helping the club to make history. We did it last season by winning our first trophy, and if we are in this sort of position at Christmas, we can at the very least beat the club’s best finish of ninth and make history.

"We have had a look at the rest of the division now, I have thought for a little while now anything outside the top six will be a failure. And if you are in that group, anything is possible."

With a mix of established internationals like Mark Viduka and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink blending with young talent headed by Stewart Downing, this is the Boro manager Steve McClaren wanted when he signed Southgate in 2001.

But the central defender admits it hasn’t been a smooth ride.

"I came from Aston Villa and we promptly lost our first four matches. We were bottom of the league and Villa were top," he recalls.

"I looked at it and thought ‘Goodness Me’, this is a tougher job than I thought. You have to give credit to the manager, the squad and wage bill were far too big when he arrived. He had to cut both and then he’s done a rebuilding job. We are now making an impact in Europe and for everyone involved here it’s a massive thing."

Southgate has always been linked with moves to the game’s superpowers including Chelsea and Manchester United.

But he says there is as much satisfaction to be gained leading an up-and-coming side as being with a ready-made unit.

"The longer you spend at a club, the more affinity you have with it," he says. "I’ve enjoyed the most consistent form of my career at Middlesbrough and the supporters have responded.

"When I joined, the manager sold me the vision and said sometimes it is more satisfying to be in something from the beginning than arriving somewhere where everything is in place and you are just part of the team.

"To win the trophy last year was particularly satisfying, it was the culmination of three years work."

In his mid-thirties, Southgate accepts he is unlikely to win his 58th cap.

But he is proud of a terrific international career where he bounced back brilliantly from missing the crucial penalty against Germany in Euro 96.

He admits that he would stand more of a chance of remaining an England regular if there weren’t so many outstanding young centre-halves around.

"I think it’s the strongest position in England. There are some positions which don’t have that many English players in the Premiership but there are four or five central defenders who are truly outstanding.

"I have had a great run with England, I don’t realistically see myself getting back in but that’s fine because I have plenty to look forward to at Boro and I can focus on that.

"I have been fortunate to play with Rio Ferdinand and Sol Campbell and I have been in squads with John Terry, who has been outstanding this season for Chelsea. It will be very interesting to see what Sven Goran Eriksson does – John must be pushing strongly to break up the other partnership.

"You also have Ledley King and Matthew Upson. I played with Ledley on his debut against Portugal earlier this year and every time he’s pulled on an England shirt, he has been superb. Matthew is another great prospect, I think they are both young enough to get their chance."

For Southgate, the future may be solely in club football. But with the opportunity of a first European trophy and the chance of Champions League football next season, there is plenty to look forward to.