Middlesbrough 3 Dnipro 0 Middlesbrough eased themselves to the brink of the Uefa Cup knockout stages after tearing Dnipro's apart either side of half-time. Aiyegbeni Yakubu's seventh goal of the season and a second-half double from Mark Viduka left them needing a point from their two remaining games.

Manager Steve McClaren was able to rest Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, George Boateng and the ineligible Fabio Rochemback and withdraw Yakubu, Viduka and the impressive Gaizka Mendieta long before the final whistle.

The Teessiders did not have things all their own way until Yakubu broke the deadlock nine minutes before half-time. There looked to be little on when the Nigerian international picked up possession on the left but when he cut inside and laid the ball off for Mendieta, the return pass was inch-perfect for him to blast past the helpless Artem Kusliy.

Shortly after the break referee Bertrand Layec employed the advantage rule to good effect after Mendieta had been upended by Nazarenko. The ball ran to Viduka who blasted a right-foot shot into the top corner.

Two became three within five minutes when James Morrison, who had earlier forced a good save from Kusliy, did the same again, but this time the ball fell to Viduka, who guided the ball into the empty net.

MIDDLESBROUGH: Schwarzer, Bates, Riggott, Queudrue, Parnaby, Mendieta (Kennedy 60), Doriva, Morrison, Pogatetz, Viduka (Nemeth 64), Yakubu (Maccarone 57). Subs Not Used: Jones, Boateng, Johnson, Hasselbaink.Booked: Maccarone. Goals: Yakubu 36, Viduka 50, 56.

DNIPRO: Kusliy, Shershun, Radchenko, Shelaev, Yezerskyi, Rusol (Lisitski 58), Semochko, Rykun, Mikhailenko (Motuz 66), Nazarenko, Kostyshyn (Melaschenko 52). Subs Not Used: Kernozenko, Kornilenko, Bidnenko, Kravchenko.

Referee: Bertrand Layec (France).