After Boro finally returned to winning – and scoring – ways in the 4-0 battering of pre-season promotion hopefuls, Southampton, at the weekend, we now face a brief interlude in the shape of the FA Cup.
Boro have been eliminated at the third round stage in each of the past three seasons and it may not be any easier this time around as we visit Craven Cottage to take on Fulham on Saturday, kick-off 3pm.
Currently sitting 11th in the Premier League (though there are several fixtures tonight, including our hosts at home to Chelsea in a/the West London derby), Fulham are, as you might expect, packed with quality all over the pitch.
Experience is the theme of the Cottagers squad. 33-year-old Bernd Leno provides stability between the sticks with long-serving internationals Calvin Bassey (currently away at AFCON) and Dane Joachim Andersen at centre-back. The ultra-consistent Kenny Tete, backed up by Belgian international Timothy Castagne in reserve, take the right back slot and arguably the best of the lot is USA left-back Antonee Robinson – a player who could easily have been operating at Champions League level were it not for a lengthy injury over the summer which means his season has only just begun.
The quality in midfield arguably dips a touch by Premier League standards but still includes more experience in internationals Sasa Lukic (Serbia) and Sande Berge (Norway). The pacey and powerful Alex Owobi is absent for AFCON but potentially backfilled by the even more pacey and powerful former Boro winger, Adama Traore, whilst the wildly in-form Harry Wilson (Wales) and young former Arsenal graduate Emile Smith-Rowe (England) provide the guile.
Up front, former Boro loanee Rodrigo Muniz had seemingly nailed the striker spot down but is a long-term injury absentee, leaving more experience and know-how in Mexican international Raul Jimenez somewhat uncontested as the number 9.
Boss Macro Silva was open with the press that he was disappointed with his club’s summer transfer activity which saw tricky Brazilian winger Kevin as the only notable addition. This perhaps led to a slow start for Fulham’s Premier League campaign but three wins and two draws in their last five has propelled them to a more comfortable – and expected – mid-table position.
Perhaps the main question for Saturday’s encounter will surround how much the two sides are willing to prioritise a cup run.
Fulham, it seems to me, are primed to “give it a go”. Comfortable in mid-table with no threat of relegation, the FA Cup offers a decent distraction for the West Londoners and two Quarter Final appearances in the last four years – where they exited only to Manchester United and then last season’s eventual winners Crystal Palace - suggest they do take the competition seriously. In fact, they haven’t lost in the third round since 2018/19.
Boro, on the other hand, have the far more pressing – and potentially lucrative – matter of a Championship promotion push to consider.
It’s anyone’s guess as to how the side will line-up – options are short in both defence and centre-forward – but it may well be that Boro rotate more heavily than Fulham, with possible chances for fringe players such as George McCormick, Abdoulaye Kante, Sverre Nypan, Sontje Hansen and Micah Hamilton.
However, I have suspicion that Hellberg will not want to be embarrassed down in the capital and perhaps that rotation may be for three or four players only. It may be wise to hide Adilson Malanda at least, partly to protect from injury but perhaps also to avoid catching the eye of those with deep pockets.
On the plus side, Fulham do have that testing encounter at home to Chelsea tonight which will surely take some toll on the Cottagers’ legs, whilst they may take Boro more lightly than perhaps they should. Also, it has been noted that Boro’s best performances have almost exclusively come against sides willing to take them on, as opposed to employing the dreaded “low block”. Fulham will offer the sort of spaces that our forward line and midfield seem to need.
So, a weekend off from the Championship grind but against a strong, experienced Fulham side who tend to have a go in the cup, with no doubt some rotation in the Boro lineup. An upset is not impossible but, in truth, not likely either. Yet, this is somewhat of a pressure-off free-hit for Hellberg’s men. I doubt too many will be upset if we are defeated, so long as no new injuries are picked up and we manage to take some sort of momentum into our next league fixture.
We’ll still be cheering them on and delighted if we win though, won’t we?
UTB
Good work, Andy. It’ll be interesting to see who’s in KH’s team on Saturday. The last thing we need are more injuries, so I’m hoping a few players will be wrapped in cotton wool and well away from the action.
Great article Andy and well presented. I don't expect to Boro win but anything is possible I suppose. I think it may be more of a reality check but an interesting exercise anyway and please no more injuries. That would be a win in itself.
UTB,
John
Well done, Andy. Top work. I think the players will want to test themselves against Premier League opposition. I think every player wants to play at Fulham.
There were some bad news on the injury front, though. Alfie Jones will be away for up to ten weeks.
Jones posted to his Instagram on Tuesday revealing he’d had the surgery, captioning his hospital bed picture, writing: "Successful op. Road to recovery starts now. I'll be back stronger."
Despite the operation, Jones is expected to back before the end of the season. The current timeframe set for his return is eight to ten weeks, meaning Boro would have the centre-back return for the Championship run in.
Up the Boro!
Thanks Andy, for stepping into the breach at short notice, but also to still deliver a very informative piece and a considered opinion.
I am in a camp that still gets a little excited at the FA Cup. I appreciate the logic that weighs the relative importance of promotion with the risk of picking up unwanted injuries and/or fixture congestion, but there is another angle to consider. How many times do we see a team that is on a decent run of form in the league, then take a beating in the FA Cup (or the League Cup even) that dents the self-confidence and breaks the momentum? I think we have to give this fixture the respect it deserves and take to the field with the intention of winning it. Even if we lose, but give a creditable performance, we may still take confidence into the next league game (versus WBA on the TV I believe). Momentum isn't something partitioned by the different competitions, it s something that overarches all of them. On that basis, for me a good cup run has more benefits than it has drawbacks.
So, come on Boro, keep that last performance in mind as you go head to head with the Cottagers and give us something more to cheer.
However, I have suspicion that Hellberg will not want to be embarrassed down in the capital and perhaps that rotation may be for three or four players only. It may be wise to hide Adilson Malanda at least, partly to protect from injury but perhaps also to avoid catching the eye of those with deep pockets.
A very good point, Andy, & a sensible precaution. That said, he himself may welcome the opportunity to savour the atmosphere of a Premier League venue & be disappointed to be left out.
Andy
A great preview by a great writer to save the day well done 👏
OFB
@AndyR - Excellent stuff. At the tail end of the last thread (for the Southampton game) I referred to the competing views about the importance that FA Cup games still hold for the football supporter. Previously I was firmly in the "Always play your strongest team in the Cup because the competition still has the magic and it REALLY matters" camp. I'm in two minds about it this season because there is the little matter of Promotion Fish in need of frying.
If Boro had been resting comfortably in mid-table with no realistic prospect of promotion dangling in front but also no fears of relegation from The Championship, I am fairly confident I'd be wanting all possible efforts to be made in the FA Cup, with the club's very strongest team fielded in each round. Hopefully in those cirscumstances there would be further rounds to play!
Does anyone know if the game will be available via BoroLive?
@original-fat-bob Thanks Bob. I’ll pay my £10 when it’s available.
Couple of points guys
Martin Chivers passed today aged 80 RIP
Kevin Keegan hospitalised with stomach cancer ! GET WELL SOON
Liked them both as players
OFB
Excellent Headliner Andy, given with such short notice.
My head says, put out a team that does not get thumped, but rest those players in need of one. Targett and Ayling for starters, possibly Conway.
However, Boro will have their biggest following of the season at around five thousand I believe. They deserve a team turned out that will give some kind of hope of a close game at least.
I am not sure about the Sarmiento link doing the rounds. He only played bit parts for Ipswich and Burnley, and does not score goals which is what we need upfront.
We certainly need another CB, with the news Jones is going to be missing for possibly up to ten weeks plus then getting match fit.
Forget Lenihan and Edmundson and unreliable Fry is only backup when he is indeed fit.
The big issue will be balancing the finances and off loading those not wanted.
If I remember correctly, the FA Cup matches have NOT been available for video stream in previous seasons. Only the league matches.Does anyone know if the game will be available via BoroLive?
https://www.mfc.co.uk/videos/subscriptions
Anyway, this irrelevant for me as the Fulham match will be shown in the Nordics by ViaPlay. So no chance for me to see via BoroLive in here.
Up the Boro!
Our next opponents, Fulham beat Chelsea 2-1 yesterday. Mind, Chelsea played with ten players for about 70 min.
https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/live/cj3vm5nz161t
At least they have less time to recover as we played on Sunday. Up the Boro!
@forever-dormo Re our earlier discussions about weather. It was -20 degrees this morning in my garden. But it was record cold elsewhere for this winter (NOT all time record). This is more normal weather like in my childhood well before global warming.
See official data in the attachment. - 41 degrees last night (Torstai=Thursday).
Up the Boro!
Martin Chivers played for Servette which was the team I adopted to follow later when I was living in Geneva.Couple of points guys
Martin Chivers passed today aged 80 RIP
Kevin Keegan hospitalised with stomach cancer ! GET WELL SOON
Liked them both as players
OFB
Now Terry Yorath joins him, aged only 75. R.I.P.
An excellent and informative piece on a tight deadline, well done and thank you Andy.
I have mixed feelings about this one, clearly I don’t want to see anymore injuries and nor do I want our promotion push to be derailed; then again, I would like to see how our “first” team competes with a team who we could be up against in the PL next season.
My thoughts on next season are also a conundrum, on the one hand I want us to do well and be promoted but that probably means less live football to watch and back to MoTD snippets and the odd Sky game!
As others have said, no Riverside Live stream available. Jarkko has mentioned it is available in the Nordics so a challenge to Werder, can you find us a dodgy stream please? 😉😎
Thanks for a super starter, Andy. I feel much more informed about our opponents than I did previously.
This game is a distraction, undoubtedly, but it’s a chance for us to test ourselves against a decent Prem side. It will be interesting to see how well we do: will we learn that we are still a long way off being ready for the Prem next season, or will we be encouraged by a strong showing? I’d like to think we’ll give them a tough game, but I shan’t be overly disappointed if we lose. (Apologies, KP. I was just posting this but then spotted you’d just said virtually exactly the same thing! ) The main thing for me, though, is that we avoid any more injuries.
I agree that Marco Silva will want to take this game seriously. His side are doing well in the Prem, especially after beating local rivals Chelsea last night, and I’m sure he’ll want to progress in the Cup. He might well have been tempted to rest a few of his key men for this one, but when he considers our league record and looks at reports and the video of the Southampton game, I wonder if he’ll think that might be a bit of a risk.
UTB
@clive-hurren. No need to apologise Clive. Great minds or fools never differ come to mind; in my case probably the latter. 😉😎
For me, don’t risk important players for this tie, for those who want us to play our strongest team to test against a Premiership side, how many of our squad do you consider premiership quality 🤔. Isn’t getting to the Premiership more important than a cup competition that we all know we have very little chance of getting to the final even, let alone win it.
Come on BORO.
Middlesbrough have agreed a deal to sign Leo Castledine from Chelsea.
A medical is expected to take place soon and the deal will also include a sell-on clause.
Castledine Spent The 1st Half Of The Season on Loan at Huddersfield Town, Making 22 Appearances Scoring 10 Goals for the League 1 Outfit. (Fabrizio Romano)
Middlesbrough are close to signing attacking midfielder Leo Castledine after agreeing a fee with Chelsea according to Teesside Live.
The 20-year-old has starred this season on loan at Huddersfield, scoring 12 goals and adding five assists in 27 appearances.
Castledine will boost Boro’s forward options without needing to be registered in the EFL’s 25-man squad due to being under the age of 21.
@Philip of Huddersfield Have you heard about this player locally?
Up the Boro!
I wonder, is this another prospect or someone expected to contribute to improving our effectiveness in front of goal straight away?Middlesbrough have agreed a deal to sign Leo Castledine from Chelsea.
A medical is expected to take place soon and the deal will also include a sell-on clause.
Castledine Spent The 1st Half Of The Season on Loan at Huddersfield Town, Making 22 Appearances Scoring 10 Goals for the League 1 Outfit. (Fabrizio Romano)
@powmillnaemore. Hard to say, however, the jump from League 1 to the Championship is quite big, especially for a young player.
At least he will be match fit and does not count in the 25.
Powmill Naemore, as we are halfway through the season, how is the Cots challenge progressing please 🤔.
Come on BORO.
@pedro Do you think Nypan will stay with Boro after January? He is counted to the 25 players as he is on loan, Isn't he?
I think Castledine could more ready to play in the Championship than Nypan. And these two players are playing in the same position ...
Up the Boro!
I was intending to do that this month and now you have reminded me, I will get something together to post up next Monday, so after FACup weekend posts, but before the run in for the WBA game on the Friday.Powmill Naemore, as we are halfway through the season, how is the Cots challenge progressing please 🤔.
Come on BORO.