Middlesbrough vs Brighton: 'The pressure is going to be immense', says Gary Pallister

The former defender tells the Independent that the promotion shoot-out is weighted in Boro's favour - but has a cautionary tale from his time at the club

Christian Stuani celebrates scoring for Boro in the 3-0 win over Brighton earlier in the season (Getty)

When Middlesbrough play Brighton this weekend "the pressure is going to be immense", Gary Pallister tells the Independent.

Winning promotion to the Premier League comes with the richest reward in football - with the new TV deal kicking in from the 2016/17 season it'll be worth well over £100m for the three sides that escape the Championship this term. As Pallister puts it, the rewards are "astronomical".

It is against that backdrop and the 45 games of toil building up to it that Boro and Brighton, level on points in second and third, come together. A win for either side in the final match of the campaign and the Premier League is theirs.

Middlesbrough have a superior goal difference which means they can draw and remain second behind top of the league Burnley, plus they have home advantage, which makes Pallister believe the game weighs in favour of his former club.

"Everything is in Boro's favour; it's a full house, they only need a draw and they're in good form. But Brighton are in good form themselves. I thought they were done and dusted for automatic promotion but they've put together a great set of results and they've got goals in the team. But it's weighted in Boro's favour."

A view of Middlesbrough's Riverside Stadium (Getty)

While Middlesbrough can return to the top-flight for the first time since 2009 with just a draw, Pallister is wary that it could "muddy the waters" at the Riverside. The former defender, who had spells at the club either side of a remarkably successful time at Manchester United, knows first hand how it can go wrong.

"I remember playing in the [Middlesbrough] team in 1988 when we needed to win the last home game of the season to get promoted to what was then the top-flight, the First Division. We played Leicester, who had nothing to play for and we got beat.

"Everybody thought as though the job was done and we just needed to turn them over and that was it and we were in the top flight. We got suckered, we got beat."

Gary Pallister with the FA Cup trophy, which he won three times during his career

Fortunately for Middlesbrough that season they still managed to secure promotion through a relegation/promotion play-off against Chelsea, "but it was a tough way to do it" says Pallister. As one side celebrates on Saturday - potentially as champions if Burnley lose away at Charlton - the other will have to begin preparing for a play-off semi-final against sixth-place Sheffield Wednesday.

Pallister is confident that should Middlesbrough secure a place in the Premier League they can flourish, particularly if owner and chairman Steve Gibson backs them with that additional revenue.

"We've seen most of the club's from last season have made a good fist of it, so I think so [that Middlesbrough can stay up]. They've got some decent players and they're going to add to it, there's no doubt about it. The chairman's been good about making money available for the club so that's going to make a huge difference. He's not one to spirit away the money.

"The club is in a bit of debt, he might look to secure that but I think there will be an awful lot of money to go on players. They've been a bit of a yo-yo club over the last couple of decades so once they get back he wants to make doubly sure they stay there."

So where should Middlesbrough invest that money if they gain promotion?

"A right-back, goalkeeper, certainly another midfielder, possibly another striker," Pallister tells the Independent. "It needs to be a really big squad full of quality. There's nothing to stop Boro going out spending £10 - 15 - 20 million on a player anymore.

"It is hard to attract players to Middlesbrough as it gets a bit of a bum wrap from the media for the place that it is. But there's many beautiful places around to live in. They've certainly got the money to attract them, they just need to get the right players to fit in to the way they want to play."

But before thoughts turn to summer recruitment, Middlesbrough must first prove they can handle the pressure.

Gary Pallister was speaking at the launch of an Emirates competition for children to win a chance to walk out onto the pitch as an Emirates FA Cup Final mascot. Log onto Facebook.com/TheFACup to find out more.