Unfortunately, unless the game is Televised then it's unlikely to have an unofficial stream
Coventry 60/40 on top for me in that first half but both sides going for it and Boro improved from Monday.
Quick one-touch passing from the visitors in the final third causing us some issues without too many saves being required so far.
Sporar very quiet again unfortunately. Djiksteel and Howson probably Boro’s best.
Could go either way this one and there does look to be goals in it.
Sporar and Connolly should be replaced in second half.
Connolly has had two chances to score and whilst I accept he is a bit ring rusty and his reactions are not sharp he should have passed the ball into the middle from the right.
Sporar has spent most of his time trying to get free kicks and falling to the ground.
Boro stats down this half compare to Coventry
Not a penalty if the ball is not in play.
OFB
Boro didn't really convince in that first half and the options going forward seem to be either get it to Jones or hit a long ball for the front two to chase. Connolly is starting to remind me of Britt or Hugill and looks short of match fitness, which he probably is. whether he'll get better or even he'll keep getting picked in the hope he'll get better is a worry - we miss Watmore's link-up play and business up front. Let's see what the second half brings...
And relax.
The fine margins were with us today. Coventry edged the game for me but Boro put their big chance away and with it, the points and a place back in the top six.
Though I was surprised to see Howson replaced, it was good to see Payero get some minutes. We saw two or three flashes of his excellent creative passing but he was fairly quiet overall.
Balogun replaced Connolly early in the second half in what must have been one of the easiest decisions of Chris Wilder’s career considering how ineffective Connolly was. Balogun got an assist to his name but was otherwise anonymous.
Djiksteel was Boro’s MOTM for me. He didn’t miss a tackle all day and his pace is such a gift for us at the back at times.
A word for Isiah Jones. His attacking threat was largely blunted today but I thought he defended ever so well whenever he had to, which was fairly often today. He’s looking like a natural wingback now.
Once again it was far from a dominant performance from Boro, in fact they were second best overall, but we’ll take points, especially after Monday.
So it was a key substitution in the second half that helped Boro edge the game against a Coventry side that were comfortable on the ball. The arrival of Balogun offered something on the left that up until then had been missing. OK, he didn't do much after that but what he has got is quality on the ball, which was demonstrated by the pass to Sporar to score the decisive goal. Up until then, Sporar and Connolly had played their own games without much evidence that they work as a pair.
Howson was unlucky to be subbed but at least we have seen Payero can add something to midfield with a better range of passing - he just needs game time now to be fully match fit. He may well get a start against Man Utd and that could offer him a chance to shine.
So it was a hard-fought victory but it's back to winning ways in a tight league - West Brom lose again and there is certainly a top-six place waiting for Boro if they can maintain that winning habit. Not Boro's best performance but they passed the test!
Considering that Wilder rollicked his squad this week and stated that the standards were not meeting his expectations it was either a bold or a foolish decision to stick with the same again. I'll leave it to him and Alan Knill to make their own minds up on which it was but it was telling that it was only when he switched things with his substitutions it was the only period of the game albeit briefly that we looked remotely dangerous.
The Substitutions worked a treat but how on earth Wilder can't see that Sporar and Connolly together are simply cancelling one another out rather than complimenting is worrying. Since Watmore has been dropped in favour of the Brighton loanee Sporar has looked half the Player that he was. Worse still he was on an upward trajectory in terms of his form and has stalled and gone backwards since his partnership with Duncan was broken up.
The Boro game plan today was reminiscent of an ugly Warnock war of attrition but credit has to be given to Coventry for their endeavour and willingness to try and play football the right way. Robbins is doing a great job and deserves all the plaudits and respect for making a decent side out of comparative loose change.
There wasn't much to be excited about but I thought Tav scrapped and battled and Lumley looked a lot more assured despite a few flappy moments. Fry, Dijksteel and McNair played well but the stand out performance for me came from Crooks who was everywhere. The match stats don't look good but are a fair reflection of the afternoon and shows how unfortunate the Sky Blues were to not come away with at least a point.
Despite the win Wilder needs to reassess his selections and crack the whip, for me he was let down and needs to make sure sub standard performances are no longer tolerated let alone excused. There is no room for sentiment in a play off push.
Nice to read a RR's match report again. Like in the old days. A big thank you to RR 😊.
An even match. Fry was good, too and it was great to see Payero and Bolagun playing.
Up the Boro!
Adama Traore has signed on loan for Barcelona for the rest of the season, thus temporarily back where he started.
Ken, it seems that Barcelona have an option to make the transfer permanent at the end of the season. If Boro were smart when they sold Traore to Wolves there should be some money in it for them if the permanent signing goes ahead.
Some good posts there from Andy, Werder and RR.
I could not believe when I saw the team sheet and had expected one change at least. At the end we had that bit of brilliant play and a little luck at the other end. However CW got it wrong in my opinion I am disappointed to say, but at least made the two changes early.
Jarrko said that the team more or less picks itself and he is correct to a large degree. It is only upfront (until McGree gets back) that we have more choice, but the new lads look no better than we have, certainly at the moment, and leaving Watmore out is a mistake in my view and detrimental to Sporar’s game as RR pointed out.
I know I sound like a stuck record, but midfield once more was poor. No creativity and Coventry showed how to pass the ball far better. Howson’s legs had gone when he was substituted. Prior to Coventry hitting the bar he lost the ball and just did not have any energy to chase the game back.
Connolly could have expected no more than he got. Taylor was steady but offered nothing going forward. As for Crooks he was the pick of the bunch, but he looked to be playing within himself, as though he was trying not to get booked and try and miss any possible two match suspension.
Dijksteel was MOtM by a long way. Lumley did OK, Tav worked hard but produced nothing of merit, He is supposed to be helping to create for the two upfront but does not.
Yes, Jarrko’s correct, if we had more real choice, then we would may be see more changes.
Haven't seen any of the match will have to wait for the highlights to become available tonight. The match stats on the BBC are almost the same as on Monday with the home team having only a third of the possession but winning 1-0. On whoscored they had Lumley as MOTM although he had same score as McNair. Dijksteel came behind Fry, Tav and Sporar. Still not sure what metrics they use when at least two on here made Diksteel MOTM.
Surely Tav was pretty good yesterday? It was his defence splitting pass that put Connolly in in the first half, his neat cutback that put Balogun behind for the cross that we scored from, his corner that McNair headed against the post and was it also his free-kick that Fry nearly scored from? He worked his socks off defensively as well.
I must be watching a different game at times!
Hartlepool face a tough encounter in the Semifinal of the EFL Trophy but at least it’s a home tie to Rotherham whist the powerhouse club Wigan Athletic have also been drawn at home to new boys Sutton United. However both Pools and the Millers needed a penalty shoot out in the Quarterfinals with Pools overcoming Charlton whilst the Millers were held at home by Cambridge. The obvious Wembley final should be between Wigan and Rotherham, but Pools have already beaten Blackpool (who yesterday held Fulham to a draw at Craven Cottage) in the FA Cup so I wouldn’t write them off just yet.
OK I cannot argue against that Andy, although I missed the pass for Connolly.
However he continues to frustrate continually giving away of the ball. May be because i have expected much more from him this season. Going back two seasons he looked as though he could be the real, but his progress has been disjointed.
Compare him to Jones and in my view Tav needs to improve his consistency levels somwhat to get anywhere near him, certainly at the moment.
Couldn't watch or listen at the time so just watched the extended highlights. We could have lost but, then again, we could have won against Blackburn. Not sure where all the criticism is coming from. The same team that was going sideways, at best, under Warnock has won 8 of their last 10 games. We aren't able to dominate games against high quality teams but then again we're not Fulham.
When you can't win pretty, you win ugly.
I noticed that our goal came from Balogun getting to the corner of the 6 yard box and pulling it back after good interplay with Tav. This is the same thing we have been doing on the right with Crooks and Jones.
People are saying Sporar is poor but he has scored 4 goals in the last 6 games.
It was nice to see Payero get some game time and interesting that Wilder has been routinely subbing off Howson. It's always good to watch what managers do rather than what they say and it's clear that he sees Tav and Crooks as key in the midfield but Howson less so. It might be that he's suffering more from covid after-effects than is clear. I also suspect that Watmore is possibly struggling for fitness as well.
I don't like writing-off Connolly this early but given that his career has been going backwards since his made his debut for Brighton it is hard to see any sign of him coming good now. I initially thought Balogun and Sporar would be too similar to play together but Balogun looks like he is pretty good at linking play up.
It's Man Utd next. I expect that if Wilder is looking to make any more significant changes than so far that he will use that game for it.
I think one of the problems for 'new lads' is that they often take a long time to get up to speed as in generally they've not been playing football at their previous clubs. We've seen it happen in most Januaries where players were dropped or moved on to accommodate the new arrivals and the team's form dipped a little.
Connolly just doesn't look match fit or dare I even say fit and his shooting is also wayward, which may also indicate a lack of confidence too. Balogun, on the other hand, doesn't appear to be lacking confidence as a up-and-coming 20-year old looking to break through but perhaps will need time before he is up to speed with Chris Wilder's game-plan.
We also haven't seen Riley McGree yet but he shouldn't lack match fitness having played 15 times for Birmingham this season but again he will need to find his feet. Perhaps he could be tested as the solution to the left-wing-back as he is left-footed and would benefit from starting. Taylor looks like he's just filling in with that role and doesn't really offer much of an attackig outlet down the left.
Then there's Payero, who has had quite a slow start to his career on Teesside given his price-tag and hype. It's clear to see that he does have ability on the ball and surely his presence in the Boro midfield should add the missing creativity. Interesting that Wilder brought him on for Howson yesterday - maybe it's the sign his career is on borrowed time as after all he'll be 34 in May. Crooks must be the first name on the teamsheet and Tavernier is starting to show he may be adjusting to his latest role in midfield.
Basically, the key is to get your best players on the pitch and allow them to create partnerships and understanding - so the future for Boro may well be the following...
Lumley
Jones - Dijksteel - Fry - McNair - McGree
Crooks - Payero - Tavernier
Sporar - Balogun
@ken How about the FA Cup fourth round trip to Crystal Palace on Saturday? If they even get a draw down in London, Hartlepool would have done nicely. Up the Boro!
@werder Wilder said again yesterday, that Payero was about to start at the postponed Sheffield United match. And then the Argentinian got Covid etc. So he is definately in the managers plans.
But where to out him in the team now? Crooks is our best player so far this season and plays well on the right hand side. And Boro have now won 8 of their last 10 games so not much changes expected!
Let's enjoy the ride. Exciting times at the moment to say the least. Up the Boro!
@Boroexile. As I understand it, Wolves met a buy out clause in Traore's contract which meant MFC were unable to insert any sell on clauses in his contract with Wolves. 😎
Well for once my predictions were about right, it was a tough match and we did just shade it 1-0.
I was pleased that we managed to get back on the winning trail and battled for the majority of the game. As CW mentioned we did, however, continue to give the ball away far too often and at times we still lack the killer instinct.
Coventry are a good side given the resources they have and all too often looked better going forward then we did and they could feel hard done by that they didn't at least take a point.
I thought Howson was having a good game until he was substituted but clearly the decision was the right one as it seemed to inject more urgency into the side.
Payero for me needs to be given a run in the side and hopefully he will start on Friday.
I am not convinced about Connolly but believe that Sporar is a class act and paired with the right person, Watmore or Balogun, will score goals if the service or combination is right.
My major concern is that we have yet to beat any one convincingly, not necessarily by a high score but by dominating and controlling a game; all too often we have scraped through and until we remedy that then a top six position is always going to be debatable.
That being said, the team are far better spectacle to watch in my view than anything since the better days under AK. 😎
The most revealing feature of Wilder's post-match presser was his hair-trigger anger at the merest suggestion of criticism of Connelly.
So defensive and thin-skinned was his reaction that it strongly suggested that the lad was his signing, and that he would be given every chance to stake a permanent place in the side in spite of his indifferent form.
It also clarified why the manager had named an unchanged team against most expectations.
Like deleriad (of whose perceptive and intelligent contributions to this blog I am a great admirer) I did not see yesterday's game, so many thanks to those who did and who posted their first-hand reactions. They are invaluable, gratefully received, and much more honest and revealing than most newspaper reports.
delariad says he is not sure where all of the criticism of the Boro is coming from. On here it's mainly from people who have seen the games. And it has been within the overall context of an overwhelming, indeed unanimous, approval of the Wilder regime.
I thought that the manager behaved correctly in his treatment and observations re. Connelly, if he is Good enough he will be fine, if not, he won't be fine. But I liked the sub's, and even more, the result. They were Good, and these are the matches that make the difference, and we have a long and distinguished record of losing them.
One hopes that the sorry story of valuable players being sold from under us without us having a shout about any aspect of the deal (including the price) are now behind us. We the fans know nothing about valuing players, yet we knew enough about future events in this case to predict fairly accurately the outcome, plus of course the follow up, that would be the second move with an enormous rise in his value (plus add on's of course), mus'nt forget them).
I agree that it would be nice to have had a share of Traore’s transfer fee but you can’t have everything.
If you put a high sale price into his contract to try and ensure that you get the best price if someone wants to take him away from you and also to deter buyers when you want to hold onto a player then your not going to be able to include a sell on clause.
The alternative is to accept a lower sale price but to include a sell on clause in the hope that further down the line a players value increases which is by no mean’s certain.
Players and players agents will also have a big say when contracts are negotiated and clubs will not be able to dictate all the terms, it is after all a negotiation.
As the old adage goes, a bird in the hand is better than two in the bush. 😎
If you put a high sale price into his contract to try and ensure that you get the best price if someone wants to take him away from you and also to deter buyers when you want to hold onto a player then your not going to be able to include a sell on clause.
Indeed. My understanding is that when we got relegated, in order to hold onto Traore we put a release clause in his contract. Given that he had shown some potential in the Premier, £18m would have seemed like a massive amount at the time: roughly 3 times what we paid for him on the back of half a dozen inconsistent matches for a relegated team. Plus Monk didn't actually want him anyway.
Speaking on Sky Sports this afternoon, Warnock discussed his relationship with Spence before his loan exit to Trentside.
He said: "He had to leave Boro for his own good. I didn't have a problem on the pitch with him. His attitude was never in doubt and his playing performances too, but I've never had so many one-on-one chats with someone in my career.
"I said to him he had to decide. He's got so much ability but he let himself down here and there.
So he had to go out, but he's done really really well for Forest. I hope the penny dropped and he remembers our conversation."
"You can see the ability he's got," Warnock, who left Boro in November, added.
"I'm not sure that it would be the same in a back four. He has to have the freedom to bomb on as a right wing-back."
Fellow Sky Sports pundit David Prutton added: "He is certainly a player who can affect a game of football; Nottingham Forest fans love him.
"It's perhaps a surprise that [current Boro manager] Chris Wilder didn't want him back, but maybe that's a reflection of what you are saying.
"Not necessarily someone else's problem but a player who can very much bring something attacking for Nottingham Forest."
But as I’ve written many times that it’s fine watching fancy dans playing fast intricate football easy on the eye but where is the finished product? It’s not only Boro who struggle to score goals but all but the top 4 in the Championship have yet to reach 40. Now just look at the leading club goalscorers in the past decade:-
2020/21 Brentford (playoff winners) 79 goals, Norwich (Champions) 75 goals, Bournemouth (finished 6th) 73 goals, Boro (10th) 55 goals.
2019/20 Brentford (finished 3rd) 80 goals, Leeds (Champions) 77 goals, West Brom (runners up) 77goals, Boro (17th) 48 goals.
2018/19 Norwich (Champions) 93 goals, West Brom (finished 4th) 87 goals, Villa (finished 5th) 82 goals, Boro (finished 7th) 49 goals.
2017/18 Wolves (Champions) 82 goals, Fulham (runners up) 79 goals, Boro (5th) 67 goals.
2016/17 Newcastle (Champions) 85 goals, Fulham (finished 3rd) 85 goals, Norwich (finished 8th) also 85 goals (Boro in Premier League).
2015/16 Boro (runners up) 73 goals, Burnley (Champions) 72 goals.
2014/15 Bournemouth (Champions) 98 goals, Watford (runners up) 91 goals, Norwich (finished 3rd) 78 goals, Brentford (finished 5th) also 78 goals, Boro (4th) 68 goals.
2013/14 Derby (finished 3rd) 84 goals, Leicester (Champions) 83 goals, Boro (12th) 62 goals.
2012/13 Watford (Champions) 85 goals, Boro (16th) 61 goals.
2011/12 Southampton (runners up) 85 goals, West Ham (finished 3rd) 81 goals, Blackpool (finished 4th) 79 goals, Birmingham (finished 3rd) 78 goals, Reading (Champions) only scored 69 goals, Boro (7th) 52 goals.
Now in the last 2 seasons probably not many high scoring teams, but just look at the previous 3 seasons and don’t tell me that the Championship was much stronger than this season. The fact that so many of the top 12 clubs still think that they have a chance of a playoff place tells me that it is a weak league not a strong one. In all seriousness how are any of the promoted clubs likely to survive even one season in next season’s Premier League. Wasn’t it Groucho Marx that said that he wouldn’t want to join a club that allowed him membership.
The chasm between the Premier League and the Championship is growing deeper season by season, but what can be done about it? For a start the Premier League is overloaded with clubs from London which gives them a significant advantage. Until both the Premier League and Championship are given equal status and finance and regionalised into North and South of 18 clubs each with a restriction of the number of foreign international players allowed to sign for each club plus a salary cap I can’t see any improvement. That’s never going to happen of course. I’ve read several books from authors who are in agreement that the Premier League is ruining football but no one has the answer to change the situation.
Not that it will alleviate the situation but I wonder why bonus points haven’t been introduced for scoring goals as are extra points awarded in rugby for tries scored. Maybe a point for every goal scored, but only 2 extra points for a win and zero for a goalless draw. Radical, but when was the last time that Boro were involved in a high scoring game? Fans love to see goals above anything else. Looking at career records I’ve never seen mention how many saves or clean sheets a goalkeeper has made in his career, or indeed how many assists or tackles a midfielder has made in his career either, but goals records for players and teams are what fans like to read about. For one thing the winning of league titles, promotions, playoffs or relegations will rarely be certain until the last kick of the season. And while I’m about it why isn’t the clock stopped by the referee for infringements, bringing on substitutes, etc.
It’s little wonder that I enjoyed football more during the Micky Fenton, Brian Clough and Bryan Robson eras. Sometimes football can be so tedious even though it has improved a tad since the appointment of Chris Wilder. I rarely find that way when watching Rugby League or cricket, or listening to classical music for that matter.