Afonso Alves announced himself in English football with a hint of what is to come as Middlesbrough squeezed into the FA Cup quarter-finals.

The Teessiders needed an own goal from Sheffield United keeper Paddy Kenny seven minutes from the end of extra-time to book a last-eight clash with Cardiff.

However, had record signing Alves, making his first start for the club, not passed up an early chance to open the scoring with a close-range header and then seen a blistering free-kick parried by Kenny, the game could have been over long before.

Delighted manager Gareth Southgate said: "He was bright, he showed a few flashes of what is going to come.

"There was one free-kick that we were standing behind and we thought, 'He is not going to hit this', and it moved all over the place.

"It was good to give him a start - it was obviously not the most popular decision to take him off, but we were very conscious that it was his first game and with Reading on Saturday as well, we had to have an eye on both things."

In truth, had it not been for Kenny's heroics, Boro would have won far more comfortably than they did, and it was cruel luck he could only help Mido's shot into his own net after it had looped up off defender Chris Morgan and come back off the post.

Southgate said: "We had had enough good play that we had not profited from.

"They will feel very harshly done by that the goal went in in the manner it did, although if it had not gone in, I think there would have been a fair handball shout against Chris Morgan because it was a good full-length save by the looks of it.

"But I am pleased with the resilience we showed."

Opposite number Kevin Blackwell could not hide his disappointment with the manner of the defeat, but was able to take many positives from a gritty performance.

He said: "As a goalkeeper, you run the risk of balls coming off people's shins and hitting you and going in, or off the post and going in.

"I did ask the question of the goalkeeping coach, 'Do we practice making saves off insides of posts'? We will have a look at that this week."

Indeed, the Championship side might have won the tie themselves in the final minute of normal time had James Beattie's shot landed inside, rather than outside, the post.

Blackwell said: "I thought it was in. What a time to score, with two minutes to go. That would have been terrific."

Meanwhile, Southgate joined forces with chairman Steve Gibson and chief executive Keith Lamb to condemn the rejection of Jeremie Aliadiere's appeal against his sending-off at Liverpool as "frivolous".

He said: "It is annoying, it's upsetting for Jeremie in particular.

"The use of the word 'frivolous' is an insult, to be honest because anybody who is involved in the professional game where livelihoods are dependent upon it, there isn't one decision that's taken that is frivolous."

Boro have reacted furiously to the Football Association's decision to throw out Aliadiere's appeal and increase his ban from three matches to four.

Gibson told Sky Sports News: "We're simply shocked by what has gone on and it tells you everything you need to know about the FA.

"There was a disciplinary panel set up with four individuals on it. None of the four played Premier League football or football at any serious level.

"The system is inherently biased because they are there to protect the FA and the referee. They sided with the referee and we would have taken that on the chin.

"They then said our appeal was frivolous which is very subjective, quite insulting towards the professionalism of our club and the people in it, quite aggressive and confrontational."

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