Boro 0 – 1 Fulham

Middlesbrough Fulham
Norwood 90’+5 (pen)
Possession
Shots
On target
Corners
Fouls
37%
 9
 0
 5
13
Possession
Shots
On target
Corners
Fouls
63%
12
 2
 1
12

Robbery by Ref at the Riverside

Redcar Red reports on Boro’s loss against Fulham at the Riverside…

The Whites hadn’t tasted success in this neck of the woods since March ’84 but with two points separating the two sides before KO past reputations, history and “Typical Boro” counted for very little as Fulham were attempting to gate crash the Play Offs. All eyes were on the tasty clash between Sessegnon and Traore and if they would decide the game or neutralise one another.

Pulis’ starting line up virtually picks itself these days with the exception of one or two places, a far cry from Garry Monk’s time in the Boro dug out. Jokanovic was expected to rely on Kamara to supply his main goal threat as both sides really needed something from this game to be considered serious Play Off contenders. TP is a controversial figure with Fulham fans going back 20 years to his time as Gillingham Manager with bad feeling over what appeared at the time to be insensitive behaviour regarding the death of a Fulham fan despite quotes from the man himself to the contrary. Nothing would give the travelling support more satisfaction than a resounding win against TP for the day trippers up from the capital.

As the teams took the field the Whites more resembled the All Blacks as obviously their White shirts clashed with Boro’s Red shirts in a cynical marketing ploy. Pulis had omitted Britt from his starting line up and went with Stewy, Braithwaite and Traore providing the ammo for Gestede with the rest of the side taking a very familiar look. Fulham had former Boro loanees Fredericks and Kalas in their squad with the latter on the bench to later come on to an appreciative applause.

As halves go the first half was probably the best and most entertaining football I have seen at the Riverside in a long time from a Boro side. Crisp passing including a 50 yard cross field beauty in the opening seconds set the tone for a confident and at times belligerent Boro as Traore tormented Sessegnon in the first half to the point where all he managed was a singular under hit cross which was weakly headed by Kamara without power straight at Randolph. The only other chances the Cottagers had were restricted to very wayward sliced shots from distance that had the Riverside Seagulls more stressed than Randolph. If this was to be the new look Boro then bring it on as there was only one side in those opening 45 minutes.

Those plaudits were all very well deserved but with one drawback. Despite having the classier and far more dynamic periods of play our finishing was abject. Gestede can win 90% of balls in the air but so far there appears to be no plan for the second phase of play with support unable to either keep up or capitalise on his knock downs wherever they go (but that’s another debate). Rudy himself was profligate on too many occasions with his high centre of gravity I suspect hindering his ability to twist and turn and trap a bag of cement. For me he is a last twenty minutes, throw of the dice type of Striker to throw on and lump balls up to when chasing a game. As an all-round Striker he struggles to add composure and control to his game and today had two really good chances including and almost identical one to the goal he scored against Sunderland and a header straight at the keeper. He wasn’t alone as the others in Red had clearly left their shooting boots at Rockliffe as Braithwaite, Howson and Downing were none too clever either with getting their attempts on target. Incredibly during the warm up Stewy was routinely ripping the back of the net out yet in open play the Corner Flags were in greater danger of being hit than the Uprights.

Against less technically adept sides than Fulham as often as not we would have ran out clear winners but tactically we were happy to sit deep and often with a back six made up of our back four reinforced by Martin and Adama as unorthodox wing backs. As negative as it was it was effective but at a cost to an isolated Striker whenever we broke. The shape, organisation and discipline were clearly there to see and it will get better but we sat far too deep too many times and if truth be told apart from Adama’s first half wizardry we lacked any real creativity where it counts. The first half finished 0-0 and despite the lack of a breakthrough the home fans where appreciative and clapped the players off the pitch.

The second half started with Boro out of the tunnel first and that was about the only thing that they were first to for the rest of the afternoon. Fulham were the more fired up and pushed up the field with Jokanovic realising that Boro were happy to just sit back with banks of 3 and 6. Despite our deep seated intent we never looked under pressure and appeared comfortable absorbing the Fulham forays into our half allowing them time and space to pass the ball around to little effect. Adama was our main outlet and was asked to remain up field at set pieces to take pressure off our backline and to give Fulham something to concern themselves with should we break out. That’s not to say that Adama was a liability at the back, far from it as he secured Sessegnon and Piazon on many occasions getting back with well timed tackles and even headers, combining well with Shotton.

This Boro side looked far more ruthless than under Monk. Never afraid to put their foot in with several no nonsense tackles from Grant, George (which earned him a Yellow), Howson and even Stewy sliding in. While overall Boro probably deserved to be in front in all honesty it didn’t look like it was going to happen anytime soon in the second half. TP presumably saw the same and hooked the largely lumbering rather than ineffective Gestede for Assombalonga. Little changed however and the momentum still remained in Fulham’s favour as we sat back deeper and deeper.

Nerves and anxiety were starting to build inside the Riverside as silence largely descended watching attack versus defence interspersed with Boro breakout attacks. In an effort to gain the upper hand Jokanovic had brought on Tomas Kalas for the largely ineffective former Monk target Ojo pushing Sessegnon further up field to much greater effect.

TP meanwhile had brought Adama over to his side of the pitch which in turn had now entirely handed the upper hand to Sessegnon who up until that point was not only shackled by Traore but frankly outclassed. Shotton was performing well but under growing pressure at this point and overall it just wasn’t looking as convincing as the first half. With Braithwaite managing to spurn a tremendous opportunity to break the deadlocked at an acute angle which he miss hit he was brought off to be replaced by Clayton in a further destabilising and unbalancing decision from the bench.

In the games second most debated controversy and prior to his substitution Braithwaite had a beautifully weighted and lobbed ball put through to him from Adama into the 18 yard box only to be slam dunked by Kalas in an effort to provide his former employers a concrete opportunity to take the lead. As clear cut a penalty as you will ever see as the Dane was literally manhandled and upended but apparently Ref Geoff Eltringham saw him as looking for it and ignored pleas for the stonewall penner from stunned Boro players and fans alike.

At that point the signs were ominous that this wasn’t going to be Boro’s day as the first half had failed to see a breakthrough and the second half thus far wasn’t offering a great deal of comfort. Britt’s arrival hadn’t ignited anything as he struggled to make an impact bar a solitary chance in the dying seconds when clean through he dinked the nervous and jittery but untested Keeper Bettinelli but hit the crossbar. Prior to that the burnt out Traore was removed for Johnson who managed to prove why he shouldn’t be on the bench for Pulis for the rest of the season. As bad as Gestede’s ball control skills may be the former Oxford wide man was just plain woeful and lacked confidence, composure and skill in the few moments he was on the pitch.

Fulham are a decent skilful footballing side and were going to come into the game at some point but as great as TP’s substitutions were at Preston they were head scratching and questionable this afternoon. His side had looked balanced and organised; switching Rudy for Britt made little difference to that but bringing on Clayts and Johnson for our wide outlets Braithwaite and Traore was frankly baffling and immediately handed the advantage to Fulham.

As the game ran down it had nil nil written all over it but for the last ten minutes Boro had retreated so far back they were almost in North Ormesby were it not for the obstruction of the South Stand. The home fans were getting impatient at the lack of closing down or effective defending as pressure was growing and Fulham looking the more likely to get something from the game. What had started so impressively in the first half had descended into desperate defending in another game of two halves and nobody able to shackle Sessegnon.

As mentioned Britt had a chance to secure all three points against the run of play but had hit the crossbar from which Fulham went down the other end and in a series of desperate bodies on the line style defending. Grant approached Norwood with 30 seconds of the remaining five minutes of added time remaining to provide a theatrical opportunity that I suspect Ref Eltringham was waiting for to award a Penalty that was as weak as dishwater especially contrasted with the one he had denied Boro previously.

Norwood stepped up and despatched Randolph the wrong way and so what had started out with so much optimism earlier in the afternoon ended up as daylight robbery. All three points went back down south courtesy of a Referee who won’t be welcome back at the Riverside anytime soon and had to be escorted off the pitch. We can blame the Ref certainly but why we sat so deep for so long with the game petering out and why some presumably exiting (and for good reason in many cases) players are in a match day squad are something Pulis and Kemp need to ponder in depth. Hopefully like Guedioura’s cameo TP will have seen enough of a couple more today.

Man of the Match was undoubtedly Traore in the first half but overall for the 90 minutes I would give it to Howson again.

Media curtains twitching as Boro fans
peek at gossip through transfer window

Werdermouth previews the visit of Fulham to the Riverside…

In the shadow of the transfer window speculation that has perhaps left some players in the dark over their Boro futures, an in-form Fulham arrive at the Riverside on Saturday ready to shed light on the progress that Tony Pulis and his team have so far made in turning Boro back into serious promotion contenders. Last week, the Boro manager went against the trend of fielding an understrength team in the FA Cup against a weakened Sunderland outfit and his players had few questions to answer as they eased into the next round. Tony Pulis will be hoping to avoid distractions as they attempt to narrow the gap on those clubs above them by collecting three vital home points – while those looking in will be keenly observing which players he has chosen to omit from his squad as they draw up their January shopping lists.

It’s unlikely that Boro will enjoy a similar afternoon to last week with Slaviša Jokanović’s having got Fulham back on track for a repeat of last season’s top-six finish following their slow start. The Cottagers had won just two of their opening eight games when Garry Monk’s team visited Craven Cottage in September and a late Christie strike rescued a point just two minutes after Fulham thought they’d won it in the 1-1 draw. The shock of becoming the only team to lose a game at the Stadium of Light in 2017 appears to have acted as a wake-up call for Fulham and they’ve since knocked in 12 goals in their last four games. No doubt Tony Pulis will be expecting that his team won’t be in the mood to concede many goals but we saw against Preston that the Boro defence is far from being back to its best.

Middlesbrough Fulham
Tony Pulis Slaviša Jokanović
P26 – W12 – D5 – L9 – F35 – A26 P26 – W10 – D9 – L7 – F39 – A34
Position
Points
Points per game
Projected points
8th
41
1.6
73
Position
Points
Points per game
Projected points
10th
39
1.5
69
Last 6 Games
Preston (A)
Aston Villa (H)
Bolton (H)
Sheff Wed (A)
Millwall (A)
Ipswich (H)
F-T (H-T)
3:2 (1:2) W
0:1 (0:0) L
2:0 (0:0) W
2:1 (0:1) W
1:2 (0:2) L
2:0 (1:0) W
Last 6 Games
Ipswich (H)
Hull (A)
Cardiff (A)
Barnsley (H)
Sunderland (A)
Birmingham (H)
F-T (H-T)
4:1 (0:1) W
2:2 (0:2) D
4:2 (1:0) W
2:1 (0:0) W
0:1 (0:0) L
1:0 (0:0) W

News that the Ex has moved in down the road with that big Greek called Evangelos who now owns the Forest has got the local media gossiping that metaphorical furtive eyes may have been glancing in the direction of Teesside in an attempt to turn a few heads at Hurworth. It’s been suggested that a few of those who remember the good times under the former Boro boss might be tempted if he came calling promising a nostalgic return to rigidly starched football with the lure of crisp clean sheets and regularly being told they were ‘amazing’. Even before the ink was dry on pressure-relishing Aitor Karanka’s contract at Trent Bridge the Trump-sized button marked ‘launch speculation’ was well and truly pressed as every conceivable Boro player who had any justifiable grounds to feel unhappy was linked with a move to the East Midlands.

It’s always been the job of those in the journalistic profession who occupy the football desks up and down the country to apply their creative mathematical talents in the absence of facts. Indeed, there was a time when a newspaper editor’s algebraic expectations were only that two plus two equalled five – but now the discerning football hack must be experts in probability, group theory and abstract constructs. The use of imaginary numbers is no longer frowned upon and it’s now widely accepted that string theory can be universally applied – particularly in terms of ‘how long is it’ and when used in conjunction with ‘stringing people along’. These seemingly precise quantum calculation, based on the mechanics of social media rumours that materialise out of thin air and then quickly disappear, are balanced by those classical rumours that derive from the momentum received from the observation of retrograde satellite channels, which go around in circles as they ultimately turn out to be Pi in the Sky miscalculations.

While those on the outside are reckoning up the possible permutations, I suspect Boro’s new figurehead Tony Pulis is not one to crunch numbers in order to find a way forward – though as to whether the disciplinarian manager retains any other possible threats of old-school crunching as he attempts to enforce his will is only speculation – but at least he now has Dave Kemp on hand to put a consoling arm around the shoulder of any squad member, that on catching the concerned expression on the physio’s face, may start to doubt their ability to ever sit on the bench again.

It has become a little clearer in recent weeks on the shape of things to come under Tony Pulis. Despite his initial promise to take a look at all the players before deciding on who he feels is best suited to his methods, it appears he’s almost settled on a favoured starting XI already. Defensively his preference for those who are bigger and offer a greater physical presence is no surprise – nor is his penchant for a big man up top and Rudy Gestede has perhaps been literally  the biggest winner so far under the new boss. His first-choice midfield pairing in the initial games has been to retain the continuity offered by Leadbitter and Howson, however we have seen the latter now being encouraged to do what many had expected to see from him when he first signed and pose a goal-scoring threat from midfield. In terms of the other forwards, Downing was always a player Pulis liked and his form this season meant he was always getting a start, though it looks like he is likely to spend more time on the left than he did under Monk and this has allowed Adama to become perhaps the surprise inclusion in his team. All of which has meant ten of the eleven shirts on offer are now increasingly looking to have been secured.

The table below shows the current Boro squad and their appearances – the only two ever-presents who have played every minute are Gibson and Randolph, though Assombalonga has also started every Championship game too. Whether Britt is about to get his first seat on the bench has been widely anticipated after missing out on start against Sunderland but a lot may depend on what has been worked on in training this week and how the top scorer is adjusting to life under Pulis. It’s early days, but the players highlighted in green are those who look to have won the shirts under the new manager – want-away Fabio is shown in red as he is likely to leave and Fletcher is shown in yellow after Pulis hinted he probably needs to move somewhere to get game time.

Player Mins Starts Sub-On Subbed Goals Yellow Red
GOALKEEPERS
Darren Randolph 2340 26 2
Dimi Konstantopoulos 0
Mejías 0
DEFENDERS
Ben Gibson 2340 26 1 3
Cyrus Christie 2119 24 2 1 7
Fábio 1435 18 6 1 1
Daniel Ayala 1140 13 2 2 1
Dael Fry 923 10 1 1
George Friend 903 9 4 2 4
Ryan Shotton 391 4 1 1
MIDFIELDERS
Jonny Howson 1902 21 2 2 2 6
Grant Leadbitter 1331 16 1 7 2 5
Adam Clayton 1083 13 3 5
Lewis Baker 586 6 4 2 1 1
Adam Forshaw 452 5 6 3 1
Adlène Guédioura 50 1 1
FORWARDS
Britt Assombalonga 2229 26 8 12 3
Stewart Downing 1505 18 2 10 1 1
Martin Braithwaite 1304 16 1 8 5 2
Patrick Bamford 899 8 13 5 1 2
Marvin Johnson 724 6 10 2 1
Adama Traoré 567 6 8 3 1 1
Rudy Gestede 550 5 7 3 1 1
Ashley Fletcher 443 3 13 2 1
Marcus Tavernier 253 4 1 4 1

It may be fanciful to expect much in the way of radical surgery to the Boro squad this January, as unless quality players who are able to hit the ground running are available to join Tony Pulis, then he may be reluctant to weaken his own squad by sanctioning exits of those who he may need to step up to the plate. It’s possible he’ll only look to move on the fringe players at this stage and it may well be that if he does get a significant signing then he’ll possibly listen to offers on those he’s unsure about. Whilst new favourites Adama and Gestede have not started many games this season, Britt, Braithwaite and Bamford have featured in nearly all the games between them so far this season – he would surely prefer to see what they can offer once he’s had more time to work with them and moulded them a bit more psychologically. Also, it’s hard to imagine that Adam Clayton is not his kind of player and speculation on his departure must be nothing more until a better replacement is photographed smiling with Neil Bausor. However, given Boro’s summer spending was pretty much balanced with outgoings, there is still plenty in reserve for Steve Gibson to back his manager should the right players become available.

As for the current players, something appears to be missing of late – the steady hum of white noise from the local media may in fact be masking the sound of silence ringing in the ears of Boro followers from those normally heard screaming in the space between the news void. What has happened to that steady stream of self-conscious utterances that proclaimed each week that the team is working hard to bounce back or build on the foundations and put the expected promotion back on the agenda? Has unofficial club spokesman Stewart Downing been gagged or even had his mouth gaffer-taped by the gaffer to avoid off-message ramblings undermining his carefully constructed mythology of a team that will do its talking on the pitch.

Indeed, why should our competitors catch a glimpse of the sometimes wavering mindset within our camp? Boro are now a Tony Pulis team that shall show no doubt – we’re no longer Monk’s work-in-progress, unable to put a finger on the problem, misfiring into our foot and discussing it all in public! The club now go quietly confident about their business and the onus should be on the opposition to ponder where the weakness lies and whether there is a way to beat his team. It serves no purpose to show your hand, lest it be seen as over-confidence, uncertainty or lack of belief – teams that win don’t need to explain how the trick works in case they destroy the outward illusion of invincibility.

So will Tony Pulis offer the Boro players a window of opportunity to prove he’s got little need to enter the transfer market this January? Or will Fulham give the Boro manager more than he bargained for as the guarantee runs out on some of the summer purchases? As usual your predictions on score, scorers and team selection – plus who will be joining Fletcher on making an arrow for the exit as some Boro outcasts look to escape and join Aitor Karanka and his merry men at the Forest?

216 thoughts on “Boro 0 – 1 Fulham

  1. I agree, every league game is the biggest since the last one and if we are to make at least the play-offs then we need to start putting together a complete 90 mins and dominating the opposition.

    Same team as for the Sunderland game unless injuries impact, with hopefully Bamford on the bench this time.

    This will be a tough ask against a Fulham team who played us off the park for most of the match at their place. We are, however, a different proposition under TP.

    I am hoping that we can sneak a 1-0 win (Leadbitter) and will be listening to the radio feed is there is not a stream of the match from FulhamFCTV due to the game being shown live on TV elsewhere in the world (beIN Sports).

    Crowd 27,772.

    1. KP

      As beIN are broadcasting the game in some regions the match will be available to view on the Internet via various web sites. Of course these sites are not available to us in the UK but cryptically shouldn’t be too difficult to find and ensuring an experience free from pain or a cric in the neck especially if you enjoy goals in the USA rather than Spain.

  2. Brilliant read as ever Werder, I think you may have missed your calling in life.

    A big test tomorrow with a decent side currently in form and looking to push on themselves, one with some quality who can do some damage.It will be interesting to see Ryan Sessegnon versus Adama Traore, the two could very well cancel one another out which to be honest probably suits Boro more as without doubt Sessegnon was a real thorn in our sides down at the Cottage. I would think Jokanovic would be inclined to tell his lad to keep back and don’t give Adama a yard of space. Conversely if he pushes up then a few telling balls down our right and their left flank and Usain Traore could tear them apart.

    A Boro victory could see Pulismania starting to sweep Teesside and belief start to rapidly rise from tepid to well above simmering heading towards boiling point. A defeat would put us back to the drawing board and the new manager “needing more time”. If AK can dent Villa, Wednesday come good against their City rivals tonight, Ipswich do a job against a spitless Leeds and who knows the Canaries might poop on bruised Bristol then it could be a very good weekend indeed for us.

    Of course hoping that Brum defeat Derby and Sunderland get a result of Biblical proportions in South Wales would be unbelievable but some of those games will definitely go our way, not all admittedly but there will be some strange points dropped in this anyone can beat anyone league. TP’s job meanwhile is to make sure we capitalise on other’s errors by winning. With GM in charge I wouldn’t have a clue as to what team he would put out, what tactics and what result we would get but with TP there is shape defining hope emerging.

    What will be critical is that the Boro have a game of “one whole” and not “two halves”. If Pulis and Kemp can sort that one out I fancy a 3-1 Boro win with 25,438 watching on and the awakening spirits of Ironopulis rolling down from the Eston Hills along the Tees.

    1. RR

      Quite an evaluation !

      There is more analysis on your post than more journos put into print for a leading article.

      I admire your enthusiasm and your bullish forecast. Long may it come to pass!

      OFB

    2. Thanks RR, maybe I should have had one of those machines to get the message… beep! ‘you have two missed callings’…

      I think the worry with Fulham is if they’re on their game they can score goals – however they also concede too – just before Christmas they had that 5-4 victory over Sheffield United so Boro will need to work hard to close them down and not let them run at us.

      If Boro do get three points and Derby lose at Birmingham then a 5-6 point gap to second spot may start to get the hearts fluttering!

  3. Digressing a little it was nice to read in the Echo that Danny Graham has chipped in with £2.5K for the Poolies and a message, “Good luck Hartlepool United hope you reach your target. I’m sure you will, hopefully the whole of the North East get behind you and all the football fans out there.”

    If a few more in the game fortunate to be able to afford such warm generosity did likewise it would buy the Club some breathing space but the concern long term is that it is a sticking plaster over a bigger problem. Now is the time for a Hartlepool Steve Gibson to come to the fore, lets hope they find one. I also hope the people of the Town forget their grumbles and grievances coming out in numbers joining the Boro fans swelling the gate at the Vic.

      1. The original media source for that Traore story is riddled with emotive untruths about him being our best player and standing out in the Premiership better than anyone else for Boro. Based on the quality of the writer’s research I’d take it with a huge pinch of salt reinforced by his own suggestion that no contact has been made yet between the clubs.

        In other news Boro are linked with an audacious joint Messi/Ronaldo swoop but its just that we haven’t made contact yet!. You heard it here first!

        1. Don’t envy you doing the match report Tonight

          A decent first half with two absolute sitters missed by Gestede

          In my opinion the decisions of A referee who didn’t give a penalty for an arm across the chest on Braithwaite pulling him back

          A yellow instead of a red for a forearm smash in the throat again on Braithwaite

          And a very dubious penalty in the 95th minute after Britt had hit the bar in the 93 rd minute

          All cost us the game

          Downing has a great game

          Traore mom in my opinion who is going from strength to strength

          Substitutions changed it for me

          Johnson does not seem to me to be a player good enough to be playing at this level

    1. Sorry if this upsets people. Love the football club, but hated the town especially when I was forced to work there after the idyllic location of Saltburn when Teesside CBC was founded in 1968. Always felt it was still recovering from the effects of the Second World War.

  4. I think the result of tomorrow’s game hinges more on which Fulham team turns up rather than how much progress Boro may have made under Pulis. I think it will take another 4 or 5 games to sort this team out as just one full week’s tactical training I feel will be insufficient to remedy the problems we have encountered so far this season.

    One major problem facing Boro could be fixture congestion. A win against Brighton in the Cup would mean the postponement of Boro’s visit to Cardiff City on the 17th February which wouldn’t be able to be arranged until the 27th February as Boro face Hull City on the 20th February. A draw would mean a replay on the 27th February meaning the Cardiff match could not be rearranged until at the earliest 13th March as Boro are at Birmingham on the 6th March. A further complication would be caused by a long Cup run entailing the postponement of the trip to Brentford on 17th March. Boro certainly don’t want to have to face a Cup replay, and ideally a defeat would be preferable to a win.

    Under the circumstances tomorrow’s match is difficult to call, but anything less than a win could mean Boro not reaching a playoff position until the Easter Monday match at Burton Albion considering before then Boro have to play Norwich, Cardiff and Brentford away, as well as Leeds and Wolves at home. My forecasting is poor, but I believe this match is crucial if we even hope to reach the playoffs before the Spring. If pushed I think a draw is likely, but a defeat cannot be ruled out.
    A 1-1 draw then before 24,242 crowd.

  5. Great read once again Werder.
    Watched the press conference today and I think there was a very slight improvement in being able to hear the media. But still needs sorting out properly. All you need is a few more microphones !

    1. Thanks Braveheart – Boro probably need a boom operator for the mic, which incidentally I actually did a few times on some independent films in my early 20’s – I seem to remember me singing along in the transit van driving to locations ‘boom operator’ sung to Sade’s classic tune of the time ‘smooth operator’ 🙂

  6. Werder

    I know there are another two journalists reading your post today and hopefully they will be as suitably impressed as we all are at the standard that you keep producing.

    I keep sharing on twitter and Facebook and we are getting a few more Boro fans who are retweeting and hopefully taking a look at what we are doing.

    The blog has come a long way in a year and all must take credit but we cannot rest on our laurels and we should all post and comment to share and discuss our points rather than being lurkers !

    UTB

    Up the blog !

    OFB

    Hopefully have time to have a chat with Mark Proctor tomorrow

  7. I absolutely love the praise that everyone offers both to werder and ofb. It is really well deserved ,both for the content and the effort which goes into producing these blogs .
    WELL DONE AGAIN!
    Tomorrow will be a tough call, but my faith is with Mr Pullis,mans should see us extend our winning run!
    UTB
    Tractorman.

    1. Tractorman

      Don’t forget Redcar Red for his great match reports and Si for his insights !

      I don’t think it’ll be easy tomorrow but hope we can run out winners by at least one goal

      OFB

  8. All the teams in this division now have to contend with Traore playing as a fully paid up member of the team.
    I’m quietly convinced that TP will not tolerate giving him the ball surrounded by three or four opponents just so he can dribble them. That must stop, and now.
    However you cut it , he is one big problem.
    The immediate answer is obvious, you play nearer your own goal.
    Your attackers are unhappy, you resort to long balls, they are more unhappy, and so it goes.
    Look forward to the game.

    1. If Traore has 3 or 4 opposition players surrounding him, it follows there must be a few spare Boro players running round unmarked and free for a pass…….

      1. FD
        Not a good idea to get into the habit of passing to a colleague surrounded by three or four opposition.
        Seriously, the opposition can handle him(just) if they can surround him, that is how they survive, plenty of shoving , tripping, blocking, and so on, plus it saps his energy, four onto one. Getting the ball in the clear on the other hand saps the energy of the opposition.
        He definitely makes the difference in the game.
        As for dear old West Ham trying it on, give us a break, why do these lesser clubs always offer peanuts.
        If it was Bournmouth who owned him, they would be quoted twenty million, and told “don’t call us, we will call you”

  9. Great piece Werder, as RR said, you certainly have missed your true vocation!!!!!!

    Hoping for a win as always, will be there tomorrow. However we are due a draw, but not a defeat. I do not think Adama can restrict Sessegnon in himself, that will have to come from doubling up by Shotton and Howson. However if we play Adama correctly we can give Fulham more than enough to think about. Not sure who is going to score the two goals at least we will need for a win?

    KP…..try the web-site that GHW posted LiveOnSat, but I watched the last Boro BEIN sport streamed match on VIPLEAGUE, or try LIVESOCCER. Do not worry you will find one.

    1. Pedro

      Thanks for the info. Have got the radio stream as a backstop but will explore the streaming sites.

      Enjoy your visit to the Riverside and hopefully it will be a good game. Can’t beat the atmosphere/buzz of being at a live game!

      CoB 😎

  10. The Forest game is on Bein so I will be interested in Karankas demeanour, animated or statue like with hands in pockets ?

    Then the Fulham game at 2am, going for a 3-1 win , Traore running riot , his first goal, Fulham player getting red carded.
    Downing and Howson.
    Bring it on UTB.

  11. Werder, another great read.

    A note about those “amazing” clean sheets.

    It wasn’t really the clean sheets themselves that were amazing. More the other three Cs – command, control and composure – that they instilled in the rest of the team.

    Because the collective of 2015-16 – pre-January wobble, Ramirez and Rhodes – rarely worried about conceding, they were full of confidence and certainty. A belief that they, unlike many a Boro side before or even after them, were at last masters of their own destiny. See also: 1973-74 and 1986-87.

    The class of 1996-97 may have been on the other end of the excitement scale entirely, but how often did you believe in their ability to see out a game barring two magical weeks in September and March? Answer: not many.

    Either way, rather perversely, there’s a lot to be proud of, in that we’ll always admire Charlton’s Champions, Brucie’s Men Of Iron and the Karanka Collective, but we’ll never forget daring to dream either. As the saying goes, you’ll never know unless you try – hence the unpopularity Karanka got for wanting everything to be so concretely certain.

    1. Thanks Simon – perhaps Karanka needed to adapt the Mourniho methodology to suit his own personality as ultimately he couldn’t find a way to handle the fallout in the way his mentor could – though for Jose that usually meant moving on to the next club, it seems Aitor needed a break after Boro.

    2. Simon
      The crowd said he was very popular, and are waiting to welcome him when he visits.
      Certainty is lovely when you have been through what we supporters have.
      Notice that we still have our away support, that was a legacy from AK

      1. Thanks for that, Plato.

        It’s too bad a lot of what I remember features ranting about 4-4-2, Jordan Rhodes, Albert Adomah, Higgy, Dimi etc even when we were doing well or weren’t concretely in danger.

        Hence the Aitorian frustration, possibly. I’m convinced he must’ve been thinking – “I lose one match, I dismiss one coach, I drop one goalkeeper, I make one substitution, I drop one player from the squad… and there’s a meltdown online! When there is a whole season of results to gain and a big squad to support! Why?!?”

  12. Prediction time, this is going to be a stern test for Boro but I’m going for Boro 2 – 2 Fulham, but as always we are talking about the Boro so anything could happen.

    I’ll follow on the radio in the car because of a trip into Suffolk to see a Parson Jack Russell pup to replace one of my midfield who died on Monday.

    Come on Boro, cheer me up.

    UTB,

    John

  13. Great read again, Werder. Thank you.

    I’ve only given it a cursorary glance but is Fulham’s good form being slightly overplayed?

    They’ve won 3 and drawn 1 of their last 4 four league games but, from those games, you would expect them to beat Barnsley and Ipswich at home,, whilst the draw was away at Hull. That’s the same number of points that Garry Monk’s Boro got from those fixtures, albeit in a slightly different way.

    The good result was beating Cardiff away but, there again, Cardiff were going through a tough spell and lost to a couple of other sides as well in that run.

    For me then, the form isn’t quite as good as it looks.

    Boro are improving. I’ll go for a 2-0 hone win.

  14. Thanks Andy – Fulham are steadily moving up the league and are currently third in the form table with 20 points from the last ten games – which is the magic 2 points per game and the target for automatic promotion. I think they will pose some problems for Boro today but hopefully with each week under Pulis the team will be up for that challenge.

    In those last 10 games they are the Championship’s joint top scorers with 21 (along with Wolves) but have conceded 15 goals also as opposed to 5 by Wolves. Boro will therefore need to be solid but it seems we will get chances.

  15. The gazette have a piece from each of the journalists covering the top twelve. To save you logging on, waiting for the video to load, closing the pop up ups, pressing cancel on the video only for it to pop up again the most interesting part, in my mind, (other minds are available) concerns our opponents today.

    The manager had a tirade at the recruitment team for lack activity in the market citing the fact they think the squad is strong enough already.

    Sounds familiar. Lets help, taxi for Guedioura.

  16. We need a midfielder who drives the team forward, can run with the ball at times, a range of passing that isn’t obvious,
    We’re are they?
    Or is it being coached out of them
    I think Morrison is close to the type we need, he’s not flashy but is competitive,can score the odd goal, and can defend and attack.

    1. James Morrison is possibly the kind of goal-scoring midfielder Boro need and I see he’s only played 4 games for WBA this season – not sure if he’s been injured or overlooked though he did play over 30 games last season. He’ll be 32 in May and has spent 10 years with the Baggies – may be worth a shout but having him and Leadbitter could be a risk.

  17. On Hartlepool, I posted a link their supporters trust statement. As I live £150 miles from Pools I was going to buy a match ticket and not go but I was a little concerned on reading their statement about what will happen to the money. I would be severely miffed if the current owners have the money and the club goes belly up.

    Does anyone on here have a handle on the situation?

    1. Ian

      Its a difficult one, if the Club goes under surely they will be at the bottom of the Football Pyramid and like as not with no ground either!

      My view is that the best scenario is that the club survives “as is” and limps through until a buyer is found and hopefully goes forward. I understand the fans concerns that giving money to the existing owners is possibly like throwing good money after bad but I think overall that survival should be the paramount short term goal.

  18. Thanks for the warm up article Werder. Your pre-match preview has become an essential part of build up to the match, thank you.

    A good result last night. As for today, I am keen to see which names will be on the team sheet. For me, it is still too early to be confident TP has sufficient control of the steering wheel to have us going into the corner, let alone turning it. A win today will be a good marker that he has.

    Fulham score goals, but have also shown they can ship goals too, so I am hoping that Assombalonga will get a start alongside Gestede. Traore’s unpredictability and speed will be too much for Fulham. However, I am concerned the back four is not fully watertight yet and so I can see Fulham getting on the scoresheet. I expect they will come believing they can win, so I’m going for an entertaining 3-2 victory for Boro. A brace for Assombalonga, with Bamford coming on as substitute to bag a late winner. Attendance, 25,327.

    1. Still concerned Powmill as to who will score the goals????

      I cannot see Britt starting, not if TP picks Adama to start. I think he may even include an extra MF to cope with Sessegnon as apart from AT we do not have sufficient pace in the team for a tracker. SD will be left standing if he is covering our RB (Shotton??) AT is not tuned in enough to track him either.

  19. our comment is awaiting moderation.

    As always, great lead Werder and good contributions from the regular contributors.

    Reading through the blog, I was starting to think like Andy R: what’s this about Fulham ‘flying’? I’d noted they were improving and scoring for fun but I must admit I hadn’t appreciated they were 3rd in the form table.

    Nevertheless, as others have pointed out, those results include several fairly easy wins. Furthermore, despite the upturn, The Cottagers are still below us – and nobody would claim Boro are flying. In fact, we haven’t ‘flown’ all season for more than 10-20 minutes at a time, barring the easy match at Bolton.

    So I agree with Andy R: in my opinion Fulham’s recent form is overrated. Having said that, I’m not sure about today’s game. Allied to Adama’s unpredictability, my main concern is our defence.

    I’m certain that TP will eventually develop his usual well-drilled organisation from our defensive unit but it’s early days yet. To date, the back four have often looked uncertain, disjointed and porous. Given the clinical efficiency under AK, it has been a shock how quickly and easily that fell apart.

    I’m sure that will soon improve but I’m not confident that enough progress will have been made to withstand the Londoners’ scoring prowess. If the opposition seem likely to score, how likely are Boro to grab 2 or more?

    In my assessment, Traore may well be the key at both ends. He’s no defender but if he’s on fire he will keep the game more at their end and thus reduce Fulham’s ability to open us up and increase our chances of outgunning them.

    Overall, my cautious nature predicts 1-1.

  20. If Clayton is to leave then how much $$$.
    All the articles I have read link him with other clubs but nobody is putting a figure on it.
    With over three years remaining on his contract, I would suggest he will too expensive for most of his admirers.
    I would suggest at least 6m pounds.
    Anyone care to guestimate?

    1. If he went for less than £6m I would be surprised

      Clayton has a lot of championship experience and was an ever present last season in the premier league

  21. Old Bill,

    Over three years left? I agree and cannot seanyone affording to buy Clayton anytime soon.

    I think Clayton was a goalscoring midfielder when we was signed. Perhaps he can be coached to be one again?

    BTW. Britt is not starting today. I would have prefered to see him starting. But I hope The team wins today, though.

    Name another Champioship club who might have a 15 million striker on the bench But of course we don’t know who were the two or three players with niggles.

    Up the Boro!,

    1. Jarrko
      I said in an earlier post that I would like to see Clayton ‘re- programmed to the attacking midfielder he was at Huddersfield. 3 managers have failed or were unwilling to do this.
      I think TP sees what we all do so maybe there is a chance that it may happen

  22. Wildshut just assisted Cardiffs fourth goal.
    Are Fletcher and Johnson better players than Wildshut and Reach???
    I think not.
    I am please that TP has be task with looking at the whole organisation, start with scouting and recruitment, that will keep you busy for weeks.

  23. It will be interesting to see how Traore’s off the ball activity stacks up today. If there is an improvement to that it could be very interesting and I’m sure entertaining as well!! Thanks for amother great warm up piece Werder. Another great read as ever.

    UTB

    1. I think I do these I’m my sleep looking at all the typos in my posts !

      Had a great chat with Mark Proctor today a really likeable guy and his In2Views interview will be written up and go on the back burner for a suitable gap in the fixtures

      Thanks for the nice comment

      OFB

  24. I always liked Yanic and Reach.

    I tried to underplay their departures or omissions because for the most part the results were still right and I didn’t want one or two wingers to overshadow the team.

    The romantic’s argument for them will be, “Their pace and fearlessness can excite and entertain.”

    The pragmatist’s will be, “To what end?”

    1. Si

      Their skill and endeavour couldn’t be harnessed under the AK regime

      Perhaps Reach would have made a good full
      Back under Pulis

      Johnson looks poor every game

      OFB

  25. Pedro

    The only player quicker than Downing in our squad is Traore though that doesn’t say much. Downing is quicker than people think, few players will out run him.

  26. Rudy misses two good chances.

    Will he be cut as much slack as his old pal Jordan was? We shall see.

    As for Clayton… Jarkko and Old Billy have raised a good point. I think the AK methodology was good for the likes of Clayton and Adomah in a sense in that they became more consistent and effective, but as all around components in a team rather than individual assets. It is spontaneous excitement that catches the eye most often – once you’ve blended into a collective that does workmanlike and demands dependable, you take time or struggle to be fit for anybody else.

    This may explain Rhodes’ underwhelming spell at Sheffield Wednesday, so far, and why Albert took as long as he did to find his way at Villa.

    1. Simon, IMO Gestede is a plank with nothing more to offer than his height. Even his head is square.
      If TP keeps him as his first choice we are going nowhere.

    1. Never mind the bollocks
      Here’s the Boro.
      I need a holiday in the sun.
      The players are only bodies and the team is pretty vacant
      The transfer window is open but there is no unlimited supply.
      There is no future and Boro’s dreaming.
      God save the Queen

  27. Well good to see Typical Boro is still alive and kicking – though brought back to life by two calls by a ref who definitely got the first wrong as Braithwaite was blatantly held and then pushed to the ground – the second was dubious penalty to say the least as Leadbitter’s foot already looked planted on the ground when the Fulham player somehow lost both his feet as he brushed against the leather on the boot. Definitely a missed opportunity but in the end Boro had no shots on target despite creating 3 or 4 good goal scoring opportunities. Looks like we’re still looking for that corner to turn…

    1. The Ref will probably be used as the reason for our defeat.

      He was not responsible for not converting those glorious chances in the first half.

    2. PAlly was talking after the game and he said he watched it three times on re-run and in his opinion there was no contact and also the Fulham player looked very sheepish when confronted by
      Leadbitter when the penalty wa
      Given

  28. Boro robbed. Happy with way TP has got the team playing but disappointed putting Johnson on.
    Bamford would have been much better.
    Hard to take this defeat. Should have been a game won. Wonder how you feel about Gestede my friends after missing two glorious chances. Lots to ponder for TP.

    1. It’s interesting really if we had been playing two up from whether we could jave scored

      Traore put over a lot of great crosses

      When Britt came on he looked unfit and was huffing and puffing after 10 minutes

      I also think Bamford should have come on instead of Johnson but it’s still early days for Pulis to evaluate his team

  29. The Ref will probably be used as the reason for our defeat.

    He was not responsible for not converting those glorious chances in the first half.

  30. What a load of bull.

    Just take a look at what we could’ve won by – an oche score. But a treble chance missed and a paid penalty means that it’s surely no longer game on in the race for double top. The play-offs seem a long shot too.

    As Pulis Waites for his first home league win, it’s like an en-Durrants test…

  31. I think I implied above that it’s likely an individual player will become a less valuable asset if he’s trained to subvert himself to the collective, and will take time to find his feet at a new club. I used Albert, Clayton and Rhodes as examples.

    But it’s not always the case. I’ve been keeping an eye on the form of a certain Cristhian Stuani since we got a profit on him (I think) after he moved to Girona. 10 goals in 17 league games over there, I believe… a significantly higher strike rate than Britt’s 12 in 26!

    For me there’s a bigger “what if” about Stuani than there was about Rhodes.

    1. GEoff Eltringham

      Our referee at the Boro today
      It was a moment that Geoff Eltringham will never forget – when he had to forgo one of his major passions and possessions, snubbing the love of his life – when he had to bid farewell to his red and white heroes, giving up his cherished Sunderland season ticket.

      Says it all really

      1. I didn’t know the Ref’s allegiances before the game or writing up my match report but he gave me an uncomfortable feeling all afternoon now I know why. It will be interesting to see how long it is until he is involved in a Boro game again!

        Leeds at Home?

    2. I think Stuani was our best Striker since probably Viduka but ongoing mismanagement and being played out of position made him look average at best. There was no need to sign Negredo last season as he wasn’t an upgrade on Stuani and this Season when I look at what we need and what we have I just shudder when I think of Stuani and what should have been.

  32. Yes we should have been at least 2 up at halftime but I think because the crowd got on the referees back about his inept decisions, he took the opportunity to award a penalty for a dive in the last minute of injury time.

    Gestede should have had a penalty awarded for a blatant push and in my opinion Braithwaite took the ball fairly off the defender and was through on goal before the ref blew for nothing.

    In my opinion the referee was a blatant cheat, nothing to do with Fulham, he was useless and didn’t like that the crowd told him so.

    Come on BORO.

  33. Listening to Tony , I think he is shocked at the gap between Premiership squad players and championship regulars, he realises the job he has is bigger than most fans realise, at least Karanka had Kiki, Stuani, Nsue, Ramirez , Rhodes Albert in the promotion season,
    TP doesn’t have players with their effectiveness right now .

  34. Pedro

    Downing isn’t as explosive as Traore but he is quick across the ground. It doesn’t matter because however fast they run the corner gets no closer.

  35. Exmil

    We musnt let our frustrations confuse incompetence with cheating.

    Several examples across the leagues today where VAR could help the referee with little time lost. If Maddo can watch the replays and almost say straight away it is a pen then so can the fourth official. If it needs many replays stay with the decision on the pitch..

  36. Werder
    Re this morning’s discussion, we turned the corner and ended up in a cul-de-sac.
    Bad refereeing decisions apart, we should have had this game won in the first half hour but, as always happens when chances are not taken, we got mugged.
    We still don’t possess a clinical finisher despite the abundance of strikers.

  37. Nsue and Albert weren’t amazing, but their synergy and connection to the collective and fans was priceless. Ditto Dimi. And, to a point, Rhodes. Kike G was a good fit with the collective also, and had a chant too. As for Stuani, I’ve discussed how effective he could be (and could have been) earlier.

    Adama is faster than Adomah, Fabio had top level experience Nsue couldn’t boast – the latter came from Mallorca and Equatorial Guinea, the former once played for Manchester United and Brazil. Nugent barely played for England, Negredo lined up for the World and European Champions.

    The pedigree of AK’s “replacements”, if you can call them that, was indisputable on paper. But the power of collective synergy, a voice for the team, is not something you can buy with money alone. You only have to recall the class gap between Ravanelli and Phil Whelan to contemplate that.

  38. Ian, I hear what you say about incompetence but how does a Sunderland season ticket holder (ex or not) get to referee a BORO match especially a week after we put them out of the FA cup.

    It was not only the two “penalty” decisions but watch all the decisions made by this ref from the kick off.

    Come on BORO.

  39. I don’t recall the referee failing to get a shot on target or making the most of chances created.

    Still crying out for a creative midfielder.

  40. Interestingly TP said after the game that Traore isn’t fit enough, or strong enough to last the whole 90 minutes.

    The last 20 minutes of the match would indicate that he’s not the Lone Ranger there.

  41. RR
    Thanks for the match report. As ever it was how I saw things as well and although the ref was diabolical today we should have been at least 3 up before he had his first ‘error’ of judgment. The gap between midfield and the lone striker is something I remember from last season so I hope TP sorts it out soon.
    For me Fulham didn’t offer anything today until we sat back and allowed them all the time in the world to come forward unchallenged time after time.
    It always seems to be Fulham who have come to us and snatched a late draw or a winner. I’m sure they have done that at the Riverside on at least another couple of occasions.

      1. Sure Pulis will get it right

        The first half was the best I’ve seen the Boro play for a while it was all positive stuff apart from missing two gilt edged chances

  42. Redcar Red

    As always, Werder sets the scene and you complete the picture. The one criticism is you don’t keep describing convincing Boro wins, there is something wrong in your journalistic style because I don’t see enough Boro goals in your reports.

    Any sign of any corners being turned?

    🙂

    1. I think once again the first 45 mins showed signs of a corner being turned but the problem for Pulis’ Boro is that the game lasts 90 minutes and performing for one half isn’t good enough.

      Gestede and Johnson are simply out of their depth at this level and do not offer anything and I repeat for the avoidance of doubt “anything”. Britt was dropped presumably for being not mobile enough yet Gestede gets a game for being able to impersonate a pogo stick. Now I don’t think Britt is the best fit for Pulis’s style of play but he at least scores goals. Gestede wins headers but has scored two league goals all season. At 29 years old and one decent professional season four years ago (as part of a front two) nothing is going to change unless they put his head in a pencil sharpener and round of the square edges. I opposed his signing for various reasons at the time apart from his lack of skill and I put him firmly in the same bracket as Barragan in terms of ability or lack of.

      These players are not TP’s but if he thinks Johnson is a better bet than Tavernier then he needs to give his head a shake. I accept that he has to try and see what he has available and he has done a great job with Traore and Shotton in fairness and even Howson come to that but there are players in his squad who are poor League 1 standard players at best. The sooner he susses them out the better, long term I think he will as he obviously remembered Guedioura but quickly reached the same conclusion as the rest of us.

      The Makem Ref looked like he had an agenda but putting his woeful performance to one side (I’ve just watched The Championship on Channel 5 tonight and I think I may have been more reactive towards him probably with a lifetime ban had I been on the pitch after seeing those “decisions”) our inability to register a single shot is nothing short of disgraceful. I sincerely hope TP takes a ruthless view of his Jaffa strikers and goes to town on them.

      1. As I suspected the great report must have had the words burning off the page !

        I’ve just managed to watch it again and even the second penalty claim amd the forearm smash on Braithwaite weren’t included

        As you say we should have won and I think TP had settled for a draw and brought Johnson on for a look

        I’m afraid everyone I know doesn’t rate the lad

        What started out as a very good day disintegrated very quickly !

  43. Just seen the highlights on the telly and we were robbed to say the least!

    Usual thanks to Weder and Redcar Red for their articles and this was a game we should have won. Rudy should hVe scored as should Assabalonga which would have made the Makam refs appaling decisions irelavent.

    The play offs are still achievable providing we play with purpose and Adama can work on his final ball _ the signs are positive!

    Back to the Shiraz now after being told to calm down by Mrs BBD as I shouted at the TV and the ref!

    1. BBD

      I also just received a Yellow card from Mrs Red.

      Mrs Red: “Its only a game for goodness sake”!

      Not sure if it was my response to that opinion that earned the yellow or my exclamation upon watching the video replays!!!!!!!!!!!

  44. Totally agree with your excellent summing up RR. Spot on.
    Johnson certainly played his last game for Boro and I would like to think Gestede as well. Not good enough.I thought Bamford should have played . He must be biting his nails.
    Big cull coming up.

  45. On another note

    Colin Cooper was talking at the Riverside today and he mentioned Lewis Baker

    Colin works for the FA and was at the European Championships last year and said Baker was the England player of the tournament. He can play as a 4 am 8 or a 10 amd excels in all those roles

    He is suprised that he hasn’t kicked on with his career at Middlesbrough and when Baker had asked him about moving to the Boro had told him it was a great career move for him

    If he stays and doesn’t return to Chelsea then it will be interesting to see if TP can moild him into a player to suit his preferred formation

    OFB

  46. Watched the game back this morning and was happy with the first half. Think that if Bamford or Britt were up front the chances missed by Gestede would have been taken. As I watched I was thinking that the ref looked like one of the better ones I had seen this season- limited sample size. Then he missed an obvious corner and it all began to unravel. Not sure what he saw for our shout and didn’t think it was worthy of a pen. As for their’s it was given very quickly and he was not in a great place to give it. Just checked up on the ref, this is the first time we have lost with him refereeing us. Seems odd we get a referee from Sunderland, I wonder if Jeff Winter ever refereed at Roker or the Stadium of light?

    1. I know Jeff Winter he’s a friend we used to ref together but obviously I didn’t go as far as he did

      I don’t think he did Sunderland I know he did Newcastle I’ll ask him

      OFB

    2. Jeff Winter tweet

      I have been and always will be a devoted Boro fan , didn’t stop me refereeing Sunderland , Newcastle , Leeds games . Integrity and professionalism overrides supporters bias. We lost today because we couldn’t score goals !!!

  47. I did not see the match but the BBC says no shots on target for Boro. All shots went 12 vs 9 to Fulham. Typical Boro.

    The defeat was Tony Pulis’ second in three Championship games following his appointment as Boro boss on 27 December. So no miracles there.

    I read that Rudy Gestede spurned two one-on-one chances in the first half. So plenty be unhappy with.

    Up the Boro!

  48. Good report RR thank you which confirmed what I listened to and the highlights I have since seen.

    It confirms the same old failings are still there, only play for 45 mins, sit too deep and don’t take our chances. Enough said as far as the referee is concerned!

    We also had the typical Boro scenario with the majority of results favouring us but we again fail to take advantage.

    Still in touch with sixth spot but not seen anything so far which suggests we can make it.

    Still a lot of hard work to do including restructuring of the squad, which may mean we will not be ready to make a proper challenge until next season.

    Need however to hang onto Bamford and Clayton.

  49. Like Jarkko I didn’t see the match or hear a radio commentary, so maybe any comments I make might be deemed irrelevant, but nevertheless I wish to give my observations.

    1. The referee appeared to have had a poor game. Tony Pullis said that referees, like players or anybody else, do make mistakes but he made no reference to the fact that the official used to be a Sunderland season ticket holder, only that he would have liked to have had the opportunity to ask him to explain his controversial decisions. In my opinion for anyone to question a referee’s bias against Boro just because he is a Sunderland fan is unworthy of comment; referees are impartial, just ask Jeff Winter. However, it would be a good idea if referees were interviewed post match by an unbiased reporter to give their reasons for what might be deemed controversial decisions.

    2. Rudi Gestede, like the referee, had a poor game and made as many mistakes that affected the result of this match as did the referee. As Redcar Red pointed out, it was the fact that Boro couldn’t manage one shot on target in 95 minutes was the reason why Boro didn’t win. That is a disgraceful statistic considering how many (non)strikers Boro have on their books. I agree with Simon that we released the best striker (Stuani) on our books and that if Karanka had played him in his rightful position last season, things might have turned out differently. That’s speculation of course, but I don’t see a better striker than him on our books at the moment. Boro have a history of buying strikers on reputation who fail to cut the mustard – from Alex Linwood, Andy Donaldson, Ken McPherson and Neil Mochan in the long distant past to Mido, Alves, Justin Rhodes. Assombalonga and Gestede. Is that because we don’t use them to their strengths? In this below standard Championship, surely we need to play to a system that brings out the best of the players we have. If TP persists with the current system get rid of Gestede and buy Peter Crouch, or play to a system that allows Assombalonga to function.

    3. I’ve heard it said that if Boro didn’t have any bad luck, they wouldn’t have any luck at all. Let’s be philosophical about this. We might have been unlucky to lose yesterday (the Gazette reporters seem to think we should have won despite not having a shot on target), but Preston must have wondered too how they lost to Boro last week. Despite yesterday’s defeat and the loss to Villa recently, I reckon we have still accrued a few points more this season than we have deserved (sorry Old Billy).

    4. Automatic promotion was never on, even before this defeat, as one cannot have expected both Wolves and Derby to implode, and as I stated in a previous post, it will take another 3 or 4 matches for TP to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of his players. Yesterday’s defeat would not have been a surprise before the match, and even though we are only a couple of points from a playoff position, I still think it may be Easter before that can be accomplished. Then what? Boro’s form against the better sides in this league is woeful, and it will take an enormous turnaround in taking our goal chances to beat the likes of Villa, Cardiff, Fulham, et al to even get to Wembley never mind win there.

    I do think we can forget about promotion this season, and concentrate on a push next season. Despite TP’s reputation as a Premier League manager, at the moment I think we would be cannon fodder in the Premier League with this group of players. In my opinion better to build a stronger squad that will be more competitive in the Premier League the season after next.

  50. Some very valid and uncomfortable points there Ken.

    I see Ipswich are allegedly interested in Guedioura. Big Mick brought him to the UK when he was Wolves Manager. Hopefully it comes off and works for all parties concerned. On the topic of Ioswich the Dirty Whites were at it again yesterday with one player sent off for a headbutt and their lovely supporters throwing seats and missiles at the Home fans as well as setting off a pyrotechnic.

    1. Afternoon all you bloggers and a comment regarding the referee yesterday.

      As you know I am an ex ref myself and yes mistakes are made because after all it is a human trait

      With hindsight we all agree Boro should have had a penalty awarded yesterday and the penalty we gave away in the last minute shows contact was made by Leadbitter however minimal on the Sunderland player

      I have been in contact with Jeff Winter who I know very well from my refereeing days.

      Jeff refereed Sland many times and including their derby matches

      His commenta are as below from last night

      Hi Jeff
      Did you ever ref at Sunderland ?

      Heff
      Many times , including Sunderland v Newcastle . Why shouldn’t I ?

      Me
      Exactly impartial equality and fairness a referees watchword

      So it doesn’t matter where a ref comes from all we ask is competence but as I’ve said we all make mistakes. I actually thought he had a good first half

      OFB

  51. Great report as usual RR. Agree with all your observations. As we keep saying, TP has a challenge on his hands to turn us into genuine promotion contenders.

  52. Thanks Werder for your Headliner and Redcar’s warts and all Match summary.

    Well I was wrong about one thing yesterday, in that Sessegnon never got a kick in the game until TP switched Adama to the left side. Adama was immense in the first half, in his attacking play and also his tracking back to cover. If he is not fit enough as TP stated, well I do not know what fit is.

    I have not seen replays of both “Penalties”, but did think initially that Braithwaites was. His problem is that he normally falls over too easily and that may have influenced the Ref? The reports I have read and the Gazettes, said that even with VAR Grants “foul” would have been given.

    However theses are just asides……TP has to take some of the blame for the results in the games he has been in charge of. His persistence with the lone isolated striker system is not doing us any favours. Yes we had enough chances yesterday to have won in the first 45 minutes, but unfortunately his favouritism towards Gestede is costing us. He offers very, very little. His heading is wayward and his first touch is woeful. As others have said I am sure if Britt or Bamford had had those chances one would have been put away.

    In our three league games under TP, we have had FIVE shots on target, four of those in the 3-2 win against PNE. Yes we look a little more solid at the back and that is progress, but much of that is down to the full backs playing as defenders supported by the midfield two, so six in defence normally until Howson is give rein to go forward. My MOTM yesterday.

    TP’s substitutions although made early have not normally worked, except for the PNE match, when they should have been out of sight. They conspired against us against Villa and even against Sunderland and yesterday I thought he got (two of them) wrong again.Britt OK, but Clayton, was TP settling for a draw then, and Johnson, who has been poor in all his minutes played apart from his first substitution game,

    Apart from cover for Injuries or suspensions Clayton offers nothing to IMPROVE the TEAM. If we can get a reasonable fee as his wages may restrict his movement, then let him go. As GHW has said more than once, we need somebody that can drive forward from mid-field and play a pass through the middle. We have nobody to do that on a regular basis. Not even SD can play those passes, he is restricted to long balls.

    It was Typical Boro yesterday, a top six spot beckoning and we blew it. This league is quite poor apart from Wolves and now may be Derby getting into their stride. How we are still possibly in touch beggars belief. We have played all season like a mid-table side at best.

    TP has a lot to do and he has a lot to do to convince me.

    1. You make a good point, Pedro. Just as Boro should have been out of sight at half time against Fulham, so as to render the penalty decisions in the second half academic, we were very lucky to get 3 points against Preston, given that THEY should have been out of sight in that game at half time. What goes around comes around………

      It was Boro’s fault we got nothing from the game, not the referee’s fault. Two one-on-ones for Gestede in the first half (people around me said as soon as the chances arose, that they had no confidence Gestede would score, so his confidence and the crowd’s confidence in him was at the same level) and Britt hitting the bar and then putting the rebound wide, were all good opportunities to score. There were other occasions on which we might have put their keeper under pressure but failed to get a shot off, or failed to hit the target. If you don’t buy a ticket, you can’t win the lottery.

      I don’t go for the “Sunderland ref was biased” view. He merely showed that he could make as many mistakes as Gestede and other players (when Gestede virtually tripped over the ball when through on goal…!). Incompetence rather than conspiracy, on both counts.

      Having said which the first half, at least, was very entertaining and if we’d scored then , we’d all have been very happy indeed.

  53. I’ll step in to defend Gestede, I can totally see why Pulis is preferring him at the moment – in the last two league games, the game was transformed when Gestede and Britt swapped placed on the bench – and for the better with Gestede on. Britt may well be a better finisher but the ball simply doesn’t stick with him. Gestede offers a focal point and whilst he doesn’t always find a team mate with his flick ons he wins the majority of balls and can hold it up well.

    As soon as Gestede went off yesterday, we really struggled, to the point where I was thinking a draw would be a decent result.

    As for the discussion about luck, we certainly weren’t unlucky yesterday (though it was a stonewall penalty…) – if you have four one-on-ones during the match and still manage not to get a single shot on target then it’s incompetence rather than bad luck. Having said that, it doesn’t mean we can’t take any positives away from it and if we play like that until the end of the season I’m pretty sure we’ll manage to get a top 6 place.

    A couple of thoughts on the formation – it seemed to be more a 4-5-1 with Howson and Downing the more advanced of the middle 3. I didn’t then see the Clayton sub as a negative one – he just added some fresh (and very much needed) legs into midfield and Downing went out to the right?

    1. I agree with the formation and the later change when Clayton went on

      TP was going to settle for a draw and I noticed him signal to Randolph to take his time with goal kicks towards the end

    2. Obviously TP knew Fulham’s weaknesses against headed goals, so no complaints from me there playing Gestede, but shouldn’t Britt or Bamford be alongside him?

      If Clayton can take over from Leadbitter, then I’d keep him, but 13 minutes including extra time and he still gets booked? He needs to show some control there.

      Traoré not able to be effective over 90+ minutes; we’ll I’m not surprised, he’s a sprinter so can’t be expected with his pace to be effective for s full 90 minutes.

      TP does make substitutions at a reasonable time, though maybe not always the correct choices.

      As I’ve been unable yet to see highlights of the match, I’m willing to concede that TP’s system is not as defensive as I had been led to believe, and with the right players I think he will be successful in getting Boro promotion, but not this season. I think we must show a little patience.

  54. A good ‘warts and all’ report RR, thank you.

    I don’t think Mr Pulis is going to make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear at Boro. Like Ken I think that rest of this season is a form of consolidation and frustration too. No doubt we could and should have won the game but while we continue to be profligate with chances it is going to be difficult. If one of those one-on-ones had gone in probably, or possibly, a different story.

    Why did we sit back and invite them onto the edge of the penalty area? By that time we had no rocket waiting for a clearance so he could run at them. Surely Boro must play to their strengths as well as a system?

    All-in-all it rounded off an awful week in our household. Typical Boro or what? they get the chance for a small leap into the top six and blow it. Thank goodness it wasn’t for a place in a semi-final or semi-final. There’s always next week.

    UTB,

    John

    1. I think you have to give Fulham some credit as well – they played much better 2nd half and probably forced us back a bit rather than it being voluntary. Traore picked up an injury and looked shattered – we pressed quite hard at times and were getting stuck into tackles, which might have caught up with us a bit.

  55. If you have ever played the game at what ever level, mindset is a big thing, if your direct opponent is giving you nightmare it really effects you, however if for what ever reason he is taken off maybe injury or whatever the immediate effect on your confidence is massive ,you relax and can focus on your own effect on things.
    Many times players are taken off after being brilliantl because they are deemed tired, but I can’t understand managers who do this forgetting the effect it has to the opposition, ok if you are 3 – 0 up.but not in a tight game.

  56. Watched the highlights and I don’t know how to sum it up.

    As Gestede has a square head he is doubly lucky to suffer from the wrong feet on the wrong legs.

    The non ‘fouyl’ by Kalas was a disgraceful decision and I am not certain Ledbbitter touched the Fulham player.

    Throw in the missed chances and it is hard to see how we lost.

    That is until you realise we didn’t work their Keeper – I will absolve Britt’s chip on to the bar, good piece of skill.

    Adding all those bits together we got what we deserved, nowt.

  57. My view, for what it’s worth.
    Overall, that’s easy. We lack the bite that decent teams have,( see ‘ football on five’ nine pm Saturday nights)
    When a competitive team get the ball in the six yard box, they will not let go until the ref. Intervenes, there is a queue of players hurtling into the box all intent on putting foot to ball, and they do not care who is in the way, they will still propel the ball as hard as possible towards the goal line.( note the term goal line, not over the top or past the post) if it bounces of someone, so much the better, more confusion.
    We are under coached in match play,
    A couple of instances, Traore, early doors, ball at feet, standing on the side of the box, the entire Fulham team holding it’s breath, no one ready or able to tackle him, or near enough.
    He waited, refusing to enter the box, it cried out for a quick entry and a low screamer on target, just to see what happened.
    However tired Traore was, he should have settled on the half way line till the end of the match, just to keep at least two of their defenders from coming forward.
    When trying to close out a match, a few tips.
    Do not settle in your own box, this is not a good idea, it means you are not going to win(and may lose)
    If you do settle in your own box, then you must clear the ball out for a throw in well in the opposition half.( do not try to walk the ball up field, the opposition rather like this, as they can foul you without danger)
    We got a free kick in a danger area(for the opposition) it was late on, a lovely situation, take your time, have a rest, think about what you are going to do, you might win the match with this one free kick. er! No, actually some nameless oaf grabbed the ball shoved a pass to some other nameless oaf who promptly lost it.
    Is it thirty eight per cent of goals come from dead balls? hhm!
    We were mugged by a not very good side.
    They played the match as a draw, wasting time from the off, making sure that they fouled whenever things looked like getting out of hand, even conceding a penalty rather than conceding a goal (they were not to know the ref would feel differently)
    On fifteen minutes they brought on three players with every intention of trying to snag a goal, and in any case spending time at our end of the pitch rather than their own, for us to agree with this plan was not clever.

  58. Looking forward to the next home game which of course is the FA cup

    I have a slot to have a chat with John Hickton who hopefully will have time to do an In2Views with me

    OFB

    1. OFB,
      WRelevant to not much but when our daughter was small she had a large lion could sit on and called it Hickton. Quite appropriate when you think of the Boro badge.

      I don’t know where that came from so I’ll have an IPA now.

      UTB,

      John

  59. Just a comment from Archie Stevens

    Q Do you think Tony Pulis is the right man for the Boro and what can we expect to see from him?

    A Tony hasn’t managed in the Championship before but is proven in the Premiership. What you will get from Tony is a determination to get Boro in the Prememiership. It might be a bit more direct but will try his upmost to get them back in the Premiership.

  60. Presumably Gestede is being played to win the ball and provide knock downs and flick ons.
    Is the problem he hasn’t a striking partner and the midfield aren’t supporting him? Is he rubbish? Is it a combination of the two?
    Also why was Traore swapped wings? If it was for Pulis to coach him aka Karanka, then it seemed by all accounts to be as self defeating now as it was then.
    I have to agree with above posters. If we’re relying on non-given penalties to secure a point, then we received what we deserved.
    However I’m not despondent about this season. Should we make the play offs, it will be because we’ve played and fought our way to form.
    I have my ticket for QPR on Saturday, I may get to see for myself.

  61. At least I had a good day on Saturday despite the result !

    Mark Proctor Alan Peacock and Gary Pallister were in fine form and I managed to get not only an interview with Mark but also with Gary Pallister

    Like Werder and Redcar Red I’m having to burn the midnight oil to write these up before I forget any relevant information.

    One thing I will say is that all the players and everyone I talk to has been most forthcoming welcoming and helpful.

    They appreciate what we are trying to do on the blog and I usually send them a pre match and post match report and I get their contact details.

    Hopefully all the great work done by Werder and RR is now being read by more lurkers and I know that it is now being retweeted by a lot of Boro fans

    I would ask that all of you on Twitter tweet tje blog so we can get more people to join us and become a more critical mass. Although with the size of my bulk tjat is what people say I am.

    So another week rolls on we still live in hope for the season and hopefully this will be our year !

    We can all meet up and splash around in Trafalgar Square fountains before seeing Boro beat Fulham in the play off final !!

    OFB

  62. I promise not to go should Boro get to the Play-Off Final at Wembley this season. I am officially the Boro Jinx at Wembley. Four visits but still no win. Now, if we played at Cardiff – different vibe, different result.

    I will happily watch at home (more probably at the “Strangled Stoat”), have a few beers, and know that I will have contributed by my absence. For the greater good……

  63. i have never accused ref’s of being biased or cheats, incompetent at times is more accurate. His officiating looked to be no worse than our finishing.

    The fact he is an ex season ticket holder at the Mackems is merely adding insult to injury.

    They say bad luck evens itself out, I don’t think it does. What I do believe it is that it doesn’t decide the area of the table you finish in but it does decide whether you finish second and go up automatically or have to go in to the play offs, whether you finish 7th or 6th etc.

    As the golfer said, the harder I work the luckier I get.

    The better teams get more luck because they are in a position where there are more decisions made that can go in their favour.

    Still not at the corner.

  64. Let’s face it the man that counts TP seems calm and I would suspect that Ryan Giggs is pleased Tony joined the Boro or he would have been a nailed on certainty for the Wales job.

    We could be in a worse place like Sunderland and we are still in with a chance of the playoffs!

    OFB

    1. OFB,

      I think that John Hickton came to Boro as a full back from Sheffield Wednesday(?) when you interview him can you please ask why he was converted to a centre forward and what he thought of the plan.

      Thanks in anticipation.

      UTB,

      John

      1. Jarrsue
        Memory alone (and how dependable is that)
        He was converted almost immediately, the reason? Wouldn’t you know it, he was brilliant, yes, at once, do not pass go, do not go to prison, and collect 250 quid.
        Such are the values of football that a good striker will never be asked to play at full back.
        He looked the part, looked very imposing, never worried by any player, however famous.

  65. jarsue

    I think he started as a centre back, later we put a full back number on his shirt and that confused people.

    His first match was at home against Workington and we were trailing 2-0 and in part he was responsible for their lead. We turned it round with a large part down to big John winning 3-2 and the Ayresome Angels season developed culmination in final day win against Oxford to gain promotion.

    I don’t know which is my favourite season but that one ranked alongside Big Jack’s relentless promotion season. Probably more heart threatening because we were always chasing to catch up.

    1. Ian,

      Thank you I was at the Oxford game, I travelled down from Art School in Newcastle and my Newcastle supporting wife, then girlfriend, even got a kiss off Stan Anderson. Hope I’ve got the right game or I’m in trouble again! Wasn’t Ron Atkinson playing for Oxford too.

      UTB,

      John

  66. The West Ham story about Traore is now growing legs and arms with everyone reporting that someone else reported it and therefore if they reported what someone else reported then Boro must be selling him for £8m because its been reported elsewhere. I am surprised that no publication has picked up my joint Messi/Ronaldo Boro swoop exclusive!

    Just about everyone in the Boro squad would have a price I dare say and any decent offer for any of them would probably be accepted right now because not many have cemented themselves in-situ.There was a singular responsible and intelligent piece of reporting from journalist Alan Nixon explaining that whilst all the connections between AK and Boro Players made sense the Financial implications would be currently way beyond what Forest could afford but in Fees and Salaries. I do wonder however that with transfer fees being very complex these days and rarely paid 100% up front like in the old days do Boro have a hefty chunk of cash still owing to Forest and if so you can guess the rest.

    Leeds Live have declared that Clayton has arrived and Hugill signs from Preston until you actually read the article saying that Hugill is overpriced at £8m and that Alex Neal doesn’t intend to sell in any case oh and that Clayton is nowhere near Leeds and maybe they might get him on loan as Boro would of course love to help a competitor in a play off race. At the current rate of suspensions Dirty Leeds could of course do with a few loan deals.

    Samuel Preston writing for the Football League World site has devalued Traore slightly down to £7.2m in his link with David Moyes and the Hammers but does singularly seem to be aware of what is happening with the lad citing the recent progress he has made under Pulis and says that Boro should do all they can to keep him.

    Baker is being linked with Celtic should his loan be cut short which seems inevitable at this point. I haven’t been overly impressed by what I have seen but I do have a niggle that we haven’t seen anything remotely close to his best. I am left pondering what actually is his best position and have we ever played him there and like TP is now doing with Traore, playing to his strengths and not forcing square pegs into round holes. Are we in danger of not seeing the wood for the trees with Lewis?

    On the Gestede debate I think he is simply a very limited one dimensional footballer that works best with a strike partner benefiting from his physical presence in the box. He worked well with Rhodes and I suspect the same would work with Britt/Braithwaite/Bamford. As a loan isolated Striker he doesn’t posses the heading accuracy of say a Stuani or Negredo or even a Kike or Ayala for that matter. He isn’t fleet of foot nor does he have composure and good ball control technique, he seems awkward on the ball and although a good jumper the won headers do not result in any advantage whatsoever to Boro.

    That last point is a TP problem in terms of tactics and how he employs him and who he supports him with. Bringing Britt on didn’t improve things because in Braithwaite and Traore he brought off two of our most creative supporting forward players. Johnson seems out of his depth at this level which at 27 years of age isn’t such a huge surprise, Clayts works hard (and fed in Britt in fairness for his crossbar challenge) but TP needs to decide does he force his system onto players that don’t have the skill sets he wants or like Traore does he accept what he has got and plays to their strengths. For me it can only be the latter unless there is a seismic shift during the transfer window.

    1. For the benefit of clarity when I say “not many have cemented themselves in-situ” what I’m meaning is that although TP undoubtedly seems to have 9 or 10 preferred starters I don’t think with the exception of maybe one or two (e.g. Downing) he would consider them irreplaceable.

    2. RR

      Good Post and some crucial observations of where we are and where are we going ?

      If we sold Traore for £7m that means we would only be getting Fletcher and a £1m in return and that is not a situation any financial director would find acceptable !

    3. From all the descriptions on here of Gestede’s abilities, I ‘m not so sure he’d even make it as a Subbuteo player, never mind a Pogo Stick.

  67. Perhaps I’m not massively up to date with transfer news, but Troy Deeney looks like he might be available from Watford. Admittedly, it looks like this could be because of attitude/discipline, but maybe a change of scene and a new challenge (chance to prove the doubters wrong) would be up his street?

    I’m not sure if he will interest PL clubs (he should with his scoring record), but if not he would surely be a better option than Gestede? I remember him bullying us in the Watford promotion season, could he do a job for us?

    1. Deeney will like as not end up at a struggling Premiership side in desperate survival mode, over paying in both transfer fee and wages. He comes with a lot of baggage and I personally wouldn’t want him here for that reason. Undoubtedly a very talented footballer who would bring goals to us but I don’t fancy what else he brings and I think the club could do without it. I know he could (if his head is screwed on for long enough) make a huge difference in our promotion attempts but long term I think an off field altercation or incident is just waiting around the corner and knowing “Typical Boro” I just know we would end up with a sulking, brooding lump with form on a huge salary rotting away in the reserves and “I told you so’s”. Not for me thanks!

  68. Yesterday I spent an extra 150 EUR to change my and my wife’s flights to the UK from afternoon to a morning flight. I still do not know how to explain my boss that I now need to have an extra day off as Boro play Leeds Utd on Friday.

    Yes, these short notice changes for fixture are costing a lot of money for us travelling fans. We had booked the flights so that we would have arrived late Friday night for the Saturday 15:00 hr match.

    But now the Sky Sports changed the date for TV and we needed to re-book our flight. Luckily we were able to change the flights – some are not so lucky.

    So this 150 € was extra costs on top of the 450 € flight tickets we already paid to a Finnair flight to Manchester.

    We will stay two nights also in Birmingham to see Boro play at St. Andrews. And seven night at a hotel in Boro. So not so cheap hobby!

    So next the train tickets. Up the Boro!

    1. Dedication to the cause……..

      I have just reminded myself about the the tickets for the Birmingham match. I will be seeing JD this evening and will remind him so we can ensure they are bought as soon as they are available. I will be in touch.

  69. You have to admire the way Bournmouth play,they are relentless, forget defending a lead,they just go out and get at it,their speed and fitness is brilliant, no big stars just a squad of players just buy into the system and are very intelligent in the sense they always seem to make the right pass at the right time when attacking , no greedy I am.
    Watched them v Arsenal yesterday.

  70. Just caught the sad news about Cyril Regis. I fine player I was lucky enough to see that exciting WBA team as they beat Arsenal at Highbury on Boxing Day in 1978. I think they finished 3rd that season
    A great player and another gone too young. RIP.

  71. Maybe I am becoming too sensitive, but it seems to me as though a lot of people I know, or who are well-known generally, are dying too young these days.

  72. Hi RR.

    Re: Negredo, needless to say, I disagree. I think he and Stuani could have been a very effective pairing, with Nugent and Rhodes/Bamford as back-up. Against Sunderland, the Spaniard and the Uruguayan linked together nicely for the 30 minutes of Borocelona that we liked, if not the rest that we didn’t.

    Though we have to keep in mind they were a right mess at the time (to be kind)! But you can only beat who you’re playing against. Even so, you can’t purely judge achievements statistically and relatively – you’ve got to judge them financially too.

    Negredo and De Roon were our top scorers in 2016-17, and no one has netted more league goals in the Riverside years than Scott D. McDonald.

    That doesn’t mean they were worth the money invested in them.

    1. As an old work colleague of mine used to remark, it’s not when the police start looking young to you that you need to worry about your getting old, but when the judges look young to you.

  73. I hardly remembered we had a midfielder called Lewis Baker. Just read the 22-year-old has featured 12 times and scored two but not featured since September.

    What, a goal-scoring midfielder at Boro. As AV said yesterday, we haven’t got one for years. Was the last real conterder for a scoring midfielder Fábio Rochemback? But you know what I mean.

    Ok we might use Braithwaite in there. Perhaps it is how we play but still we do not get much goals from midfield. Just saying, like.

    Up the Boro!

  74. For all Boro fans still wanting news regarding Pools fight for survival keep in touch on the Hartlepool Mail website. For the diehards like me, Michelle Taylor Ward has designed a £20 tee shirt depicting newspaper cuttings finest hours including the 1957 FA Cup match against Manchester United when Pools scared the living daylights out of the famous Busby Babes, the 2005 Sheffield Wednesday playoff match at the Millennium Stadium when Pools were within eight minutes of reaching the Championship, and amongst others the 1988 pre-season friendly 6-0 win against Manchester United. Apparently Sir Geoff Hurst has thrown in his support to the ‘Save Hartlepool Appeal’ also, so let’s get cracking!

  75. I bought two Hartlepool T-shirts for me and my wife. We both were at the Vic in 1986 to see Boro. Lovely sunny day!

    We were on holiday in Hartlepool in September 2016 but did not see any Pools matches. Only Boro at Everton and home to Spurs.

    When we come in March the Pools match does not clash with Boro vs. Leeds as our match is on Friday. But they play away at Aldershot (4,5 hours by train)!

    Unfortunately the matches class too often. Up the Boro!

  76. I know that we discuss every fault in every match, but no one has mentioned the behaviour of our keeper during the penalty.
    In the last minute, a penalty, three points, tremendous pressure on the taker.
    Our keeper did the unthinkable, jumping up and down on his goal line, touching the crossbar and generally clowning about.
    In the above situation, the taker is under a lot of stress, wondering which way to go, will he miss it? Will the keeper dive the right way?
    Our keeper should have positioned himself centre of goal, fixed his eyes on the ball, slight crouch, ready to dive,
    Put some doubt in the takers head, make him think, get inside his head.
    The taker might have got nervous, might have hit a soft one, or an aerial shot, might have put past the post.
    When it came to it our keeper did a wobbly knees act, sinking slowly to the floor in a pretend dive.
    Must do better.

  77. Well I keep looking at the web-sites and cannot find anything of interest involving the Boro. Isn’t there anyone on here (I’m thinking OFB) who has any rumours, true or false it does not matter, with regards to outgoings and incomings. After all it is only 15 days to the end of the window.

    See Derby are signing Jerome from Norwich….a pick on here a year ago by some.

    1. Let’s see rumours

      Grant to Notts Forest

      Fletcher to Sunderland

      Guediora to anyone who wants a loan fee but I don’t know how much we would have to pay them

      We are also interested in a young Scottish Winger

  78. Leadbitter was effectively ever present under Karanka until just after it was revealed he’d played through the pain barrier to help us get promoted.

    You could argue the Leads-AK axis was the heartbeat of the team, like Charlton-McCarthy/Townsend for Ireland. Never mind the quality, it made us tick.

    But time waits for no one and injuries intervene, so the arrival of De Roon to join Clayton and Forshaw seemed quite logical.

    In a big way, I felt bad for De Roon. Because he tried hard, he scored some goals and by all accounts looked and sounded like a very nice guy. Better still, I think we made a profit on sending him back to Atalanta. (It was revealed we only paid £8.8m for him, not £12m. I say “only” because nowadays ten or eleven De Roons equal one Pogba, and neither are frankly worth that cash.)

    But then… I remember a conversation Eamon Dunphy had with another journo, Tom Keogh, about Big Jack’s predecessor, Eoin Hand. Who, by every account I’ve read, is a totally decent bloke.

    Keogh (“a good journalist… who never wrote a bad word about anyone”, says Dunphy) told Dunphy to cut Hand some slack because he was a good man, a “decent skin.”

    Dunphy’s response was that Hand wasn’t paid to be a “decent skin”, but to manage the team. A good answer, you have to admit.

    Shortly afterwards, he coined the term “decentskinmanship”. That, effectively, is the means of protecting mediocrity from criticism because the subject is a “decent skin”. Dunphy called it the “curse of a small place… Mediocrity protecting mediocrity… worse, elevating it to a virtue.”

    Make what you will of that. I think another Talking Point’s coming on.

    PS Great new header, Werder.

    1. Thanks Simon, I knew I could rely on you to spot the new header graphic on the home page – it’s one of those jobs that’s been on the back-burner for quite some months as I’ve wanted to design a graphic that better encapsulated what Diasboro represented as a whole – especially for new visitors. Anyway, I managed to make progress during the last couple of days in between programming work as a means of resting the logical side of my brain 🙂

  79. Now then fellow followers of all things Boro.

    As my new moniker suggests I’ve moved out to Saudi, for work reasons, and I’ve been off grid trying to sort out an Internet package.

    Firstly, Werder the new banner is very eye catching and another example of your commitment to the blog. Long may it continue.

    I’ve not read many of the recent posts but I did read the Fulham match report from RR and Werders opening scene setter. Both up to your usual high standards gents.

    And a virtual pat on the back for OFB and his latest interviews. I well remember Fatty Foggon running through defences and latching on to a perfectly weighted through ball from Bobby or Souey.

    I did have a it of a bonus last Saturday, as I was flicking through the channels looking for a game to watch lo and behold there was the mighty Boro on Bein with English commentary to boot. Anyway I can’t believe we lost that one. And in such appalling circumstances. I thought we played some of the best football I’ve seen us play in a long while but if only we could covert some of those chances we keep missing on a far too regular basis.

    And as for the body slam on Braithwaite, if that idiot of a ref thought that wasn’t a penalty then I’m sorry who ever you are, it’s time to hang your whistle up. As appalling a decision you will see this season. And then to cap it off he goes and gives Fulham what even the commentator thought was a soft penalty in the extreme. But never mind these things even themselves out over the season. Apparently.

    Onto QPR then and if,a big ask I know, we play for more than 45 minutes like we did against Fulham then I fancy us for 3 points and back in the hunt for a play off spot.

    One final point about TP. When he was appointed I said I wasn’t a fan of his style of football. I also said I’d hold my hand up and admit I was wrong if his style of play wasn’t the way he’s been portrayed of playing over the years. Well I’m pleased to say at the moment it’s between waist and chest height. Keep on playing as we are and I’ll be a convert. If only we could do it for longer periods of games.

    1. Tweet on Twitter from @kaylmurray

      Check out this recent interview I did with DiasBoro, which is a free service to join for Boro fans worldwide. Diasboro.wordpress.com #UTB

    2. Enjoy the sun you’ll need to put your hand over your head to protect your eyes from the rays!

      I am enjoying the football under Pulis we look more organised

      OFB

    3. Welcome back onto the grid FAA and hope you’re adjusting to your move to Saudi – plus thanks for your comments on the articles and the new home page graphic – I’m not sure where this week has gone as it’s almost time to starting thinking about QPR!

    1. Many thanks although I must confess Mrs OFB keeps me right with asking the pertinent questions.

      Behind every man etc you all know what I mean!

      OFB

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