It's been about some great and somewhat unexpected decisions by Hellberg so far since his appointment - there were a few raised eyebrows when he picked Bangura for his first start in nearly two years but he played brilliantly and followed it up with another very good performance last night.
Then seeing Gilbert in the starting line-up in what looked like a midfield that may lack the steel required was quickly put to rest as it was almost like having 2 Hayden Hackney's executing his full range.
It was quite a remarkable performance from Gilbert, who hadn't really played a game in that position but in the post-match interview spoke of how he often played in training with Hackney and had a good understanding with him and how he plays.
The fact that Hellberg trusts players on what he sees in training is quite refreshing and perhaps coming in as the new man means he doesn't have to explain why he's choosing certain players ahead of others.
The team spirit looks very good and it was interesting in how he has explained to the players about finding the space depending if it means going long, short or wide. All of a sudden Boro looked like they knew how to attack and playing 2 up top also stopped the forwards looking isolated.
Whether, it will look that easy against tougher opposition who sit in a low block will remain to be seen but it's adding confidence and we are seeing more variation, width and pace moving forward up the pitch. It also helps that McGree is fit again, Whittaker is looking much sharper and both Hackney and Gilbert have a great passing range too.
It's starting to look like Boro have one of the strongest squads in the Championship and not just a good First XI - sitting in second spot just shy of two points per game with Hellberg claiming his team will get better could be an ominous sign...
Happy Independence Day, Jarkko.
@Jarkko - Who needs four candles? Two are quite enough in any window! Enjoy the day... I think ANY country would celebrate freedom from the grip of Russia.
Last night was an enlightening performance and Hackney was deservedly man of the match.
However, the two players who caught my eye were McGree and Gilbert. Their first touch was impressive keeping the ball moving and so playing at a faster tempo. Playing two forwards increased Boro’s attacking threat although I’d still like to see Conway do a bit less charging all over the place.
A noticeable difference was Birgzorg who’s close control is poor losing the ball on the first two occasions he came on when the ball was passed to him. Far too often he puts his head down and appears unaware of teammates close by.
Hopefully for the next game some of the injured players may be back but if not then the same starting eleven wouldn’t be a problem.
So, it’s a relaxing stress free afternoon watching the scores of the teams chasing Boro .
Philip of Huddersfield 👍😄👍
@andy-r and Dormo, thanks for remembering. I was planning to do some gardening work before the winter and snow, but I have a flu today. But it was nice to see the match on TV yesterday. Hopefully the same at Charlton. Up the Boro!
Well that was a great result and good that most of us that were hoping/expecting three points were not disappointed.
Unfortunately as I was switching on the tv and looking forward to the match, the half time score flashed up which I couldn’t avoid seeing and whilst delighted to see we were already at 0-4 it dampened the anticipation somewhat.
A comfortable win against a shockingly poor Hull side which never really looked as if they could get back into the game or score from open play.
With the return of Bangura, McGree and Gilbert KH has plenty of options to both Rotate and improve squad performances.
Not wishing to be churlish, we do still give the ball away a little more than I would like and we will need to be less open against better sides; that being said this was an excellent result and good all round performance. Now for Charlton. 😎
Glad to see Tommy Conway, the provider of 2 of the goals.
@malcolm Yes, he looked better in that formation, although I think he should have passed the ball before he was brought down in the box.
Do we think we’ll ever be given another penalty?
Glad to see Tommy Conway, the provider of 2 of the goals.
I’ve just read the BBC’s report and they only credit TC with one assist. Still a better performance though - next step, score a goal.
@martin-bellamy - If Conway is not scoring but is at least contributing the odd assist to others who do score, and if he is at least closing opposition players down and making runs taking away defenders which creates space for team mates, then the lack of goals can be accommodated. But in the final analysis it will always be goals which represent a striker's main currency. I bet at the end of the season a player like McGree (who missed most of the first third of the season) or Whittaker (who has come good in recent matches) will still be expected to have a decent handful of goals each to their names, in addition to the creative work they do on behalf of others.
And as regard to penalties, we can only assume that Conway's attempts to emulate Tom Daly earlier in the season have been noted by referees. Presumably he would now only have a penalty awarded to him if the defender were seen to chop one of Conway's legs off with a machete.
Ipswich Town 3 Coventry 0 at full time (1-0 HT)
Egeli (43')
G. Hirst (60')
Iván Azón (90'+5)
Let's hope Coventry will have a few difficult results and Boro can catch them up. But I am more worried about Ipswich. I guess it will be a three way race between Boro, Coventry and Ipswich for the top two places.
It is Millwall just two points behind Boro now, and Ipswich are fourth and five points behing Boro. Tough. Up the Boro!
@jarkko Don’t forget Stoke got beat 4-0 by Shef Utd today as well.
Come on BORO.
@forever-dormo I agree with all you’ve written. As far as penalties are concerned, I suspect you’re right about referees expecting him to dive - unfortunately they may also tar our other players with the same brush.
Charlton only played 12 minutes today as the match was abandoned due to the death of a Charlton supporter in the crowd.
Come on BORO.