Woodgate injury blow for England

The 27-year-old, who has been hampered by a problem in his left knee for several months, is available for Sunday's final Barclays Premiership fixture against Fulham, but will then have surgery to assess the extent of any damage.

Scroll down to read more:

Manager Gareth Southgate said: "Jonathan is going to have an exploratory operation on his left knee on Monday.

"He has had a niggle for the last couple of months, so they are going to take at look at it and we will have a clearer picture of what the problem is after Monday.

"The operation will mean he will not be available for the England games this summer."

Woodgate, who joined Boro in a permanent deal last month after spending the season on loan from Real Madrid, will also miss the friendly against Brazil on June 1.

England boss Steve McClaren was aware of the situation and did not include the former Leeds and Newcastle defender in his squad for the B international against Albania in a fortnight when he announced it yesterday.

The news will have come as a blow to the England boss with Woodgate having been in superb form since signing for his hometown club on loan last summer.

Injuries had blighted his spells at both St James' Park and the Bernabeu Stadium, but he has missed only eight of the 43 games Boro have played since he arrived at the Riverside Stadium.

Having proved his fitness, Woodgate sealed a £7million permanent transfer last month and siged a four-year contract despite interest from other clubs.

McClaren was quick to bring him back into the international fold when he handed him his sixth senior cap in the 1-0 friendly defeat by Spain at Old Trafford in February, his first in almost three years.

However, he pulled out of the qualifiers against Israel and Andorra the following month with a knee problem which has troubled him ever since.

Woodgate has played every minutes of his club's last five games and is expected to start against Fulham on Sunday before his operation.

Meanwhile, Boro today announced defender Stuart Parnaby will leave the club when his contract expires at the end of the season.

The 24-year-old former trainee has made 126 appearances for the Teessiders, including last season's UEFA Cup final, had earlier rejected a new deal after making only 11 starts since former team-mate Southgate took over from McClaren.

Southgate said: "We did make Stuart an offer earlier in the season that he did not feel was right for him, but we both now agree that the time is right for him to move on.

"I think Stuart will be a better player for the challenge of going out and proving himself somewhere else.

"He played a big part for us last season, particularly during our long run in Europe, but he has not been able to force his way into the side on a regular basis this time around.

"But he is a good pro who has done well for the club and we wish him all the best wherever he goes."

Parnaby will be joined by Abel Xavier, Malcolm Christie and Danny Graham in leaving the club this summer.