Bolton v Boro

Andy R · 2026-10-20T06:33:40Z

After Boro’s latest game of two halves in the 2-2 draw with Cardiff City, attention now turns to Friday night’s trip to Bolton Wanderers, live on Sky Sports with an 8pm kick-off.In my previous match preview (West Brom, 29th August), the theme centred around how difficult it was to judge where Boro were as a team, with good performances often lasting only 45 minutes and the recurring issue of conceding avoidable goals. As we approach the quarter mark of the season, you would be forgiven for asking: what has actually changed?On the face of it, not much. Happily, the points keep rolling in, but in terms of performances and assessing the club’s longer-term promotion credentials, Saturday’s lunchtime kick-off provided further evidence that Kim Hellberg’s Boro remain an inconsistent lot. Not necessarily from game to game, but from half to half.Against Cardiff, a much-changed Boro produced a pretty awful first-half display, conceding twice to a fluent, aggressive pressing side but one that, ultimately, still looks fairly middling at Championship level. That said, Boro continued to create chances throughout. Unfortunately, Neto Borges was unable to convert any of what might have been an unprecedented double hat-trick.Some things have started to settle down, however. If the concept of a “best XI” still exists in modern football, then surely Boro’s back four of Brittain, Phillips, Malanda and Borges has now emerged as first choice, with Morris sitting in front of them, Cozier-Duberry established on the right wing and Will Lankshear leading the line.That leaves four positions still open to debate: goalkeeper, central midfield, left wing and the number ten role.Goalkeeper, at least here in Diasboroland, is perhaps the most contentious. Sadly, Vitek has still yet to convince. With distribution that appears less assured than predecessor Sol Brynn’s, occasional uncertainty under the high ball, a tendency to parry rather than claim, and now a couple of goals conceded at his near post, questions are understandably being asked about Boro’s 6ft 6in, £7m stopper.Yet I would still retain him between the sticks, at least for now. The main reason being that I don’t think Brynn is any t overall. I like almost everything Sol brings to the position, except for the glaring shot-stopping error that seems to arrive from nowhere every few games and almost inevitably leads to a goal conceded against the run of play. Vitek may not yet have nailed the spot, but he’s yet to make a real howler either in my view.What happens if we replace Vitek with Brynn, he performs well for a couple of matches, then drops one of those familiar clangers? Do we switch back again? Maybe. But I’m not convinced that serves the team’s wider interests. At just 22 years old, Vitek is learning on the job and should improve with experience. I would rather ride out the current underwhelmedness, ideally behind a settled back four, and give him every opportunity to fulfil his potential, than revert to a goalkeeper who has already missed a significant opportunity to make the position his own. I suspect, however, that I’m in an increasingly small minority on that one.Moving to central midfield, Berhalter has become first choice and was probably left out against Cardiff largely because of a heavy workload for both club and country. Even so, is he the right fit alongside Morris?There is little doubt that the biggest contributor to Boro’s continued defensive fragility is a lack of cover from midfield. Morris cannot do it alone and, increasingly, he is being tasked with dictating play and influencing attacks. There is plenty to admire about Berhalter, but for me the balance of that partnership still feels slightly off.With no obvious alternative available - at least not one that’s been tried to date - perhaps Hellberg should consider sacrificing the number ten role and introducing an additional box-to-box midfielder. It might provide the extra protection the defence often lacks. If not, it remains a position that deserves attention in January.On the left wing, the battle appears to be between Conway and Sarmiento. Conway offers more aggression and defensive diligence, while Sarmiento brings quicker feet and perhaps a little more creativity. The end product from both remains somewhat limited, but the effort and work rate certainly cannot be questioned.Then there is that number ten role, largely occupied by Riley McGree. For me, he simply has not got going this season. He is neither creating enough opportunities for Lankshear nor making enough runs beyond him to become a consistent goalscoring threat himself.I remain a huge fan of McGree, but despite Boro’s impressive attacking numbers overall, something about his performances does not quite feel right at present. As mentioned, I would be tempted to shift towards more of a 4-3-3, with an additional midfielder alongside Morris and Berhalter to improve the balance of the side.That said, we know Hellberg is very much a fluidity-o...

Page 5 / 5 Prev

2026-27

Last Post by Andy R 41 minutes ago

121 Posts

18 Users

716 Reactions

546 Views

Andy R

Member

Joined: 6 years ago

Posts: 1687

Topic starter October 27, 2026 7:14 am

@martin-bellamy Yes, Conway deserves praise. I’m another who has questioned him.

That said, I’m still not convinced. I absolutely love the bloke for his effort and mentality but I’m greedy - I want the left side of our team to be as good as the right.

If we had a left back as good as Brittain and a left winger as good as ACD then we’d really be a team with threats everywhere and far less reliance on a few individuals.

A battler in centre mid in the Leadbitter mould, a back-up striker in the Nugent mould and a Shay Given-type keeper and we’re ready to win the league in style!

Liked by K P in Spain

ReplyQuote

Page 5 / 5 Prev

Forum Jump:

Previous Topic

RE: Bolton v Boro

@martin-bellamy Yes, Conway deserves praise. I’m anothe...

By Andy R , 41 minutes ago
RE: Bolton v Boro

In the absence of a top game to watch on TV I’ve just w...

By Philip of Huddersfield , 10 hours ago
RE: Bolton v Boro

@martin-bellamy. Martin your criticism was justified l...

By K P in Spain , 11 hours ago
RE: Bolton v Boro

Mention of Tommy Conway has reminded me to admit that I...

By Martin Bellamy , 12 hours ago
RE: Bolton v Boro

@pedro Basically, the computer says no...

By werdermouth , 14 hours ago
RE: Bolton v Boro

Just as a bit of fun, here is a AI generated comparison...

By Pedro de Espana , 14 hours ago
RE: Bolton v Boro

@werdermouth. “January is notoriously difficult to pick...

By K P in Spain , 14 hours ago
RE: Bolton v Boro

@andy-r I'd agree with that assessment - I have my d...

By werdermouth , 15 hours ago
RE: Bolton v Boro

@jarkko Yes, once fit, knowing how important it is to k...

By Andy R , 16 hours ago
RE: Bolton v Boro

There will be another chance for Strelec, when we will ...

By jarkko , 17 hours ago

Forum Icons: Forum contains no unread posts Forum contains unread posts

Topic Icons: Not Replied Replied Active Hot Sticky Unapproved Solved Private Closed