Middlesbrough

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Middlesbrough forward David Strelec scored his 10th senior international goal for Slovakia as they beat Romania 2-0 in a friendly in Bratislava on Tuesday night.

The 24-year-old was on target just after half-time for his second goal of the international break although the first came with mixed emotions.

Strelec also scored against Kosovo last Thursday as the Slovaks lost 4-3 at home in their World Cup play-off to miss out on this year's tournament in the USA, Canada and Mexico.

The former Slovan Bratislava striker joined Middlesbrough in September 2025 and will return to England to be part of Boro's squad for Friday's Championship match at home to Millwall (12:30 BST).

Middlesbrough are currently second in the Championship table, two points above their fourth-placed opponents.

A victory or a draw for Middlesbrough against Millwall in Good Friday's early game in the Championship (12:30 BST) will keep them in second until Monday with Ipswich Town not in action until then.

The Lions need a win to move into the automatic promotion places.

• Middlesbrough have won four of their past six league games against Millwall (L2), and are hoping to complete the double over the Lions for the first time since 2014-15.

• Millwall have won just one of their past nine away league games against Middlesbrough (D3 L5), a 1-0 victory in August 2023.

• Middlesbrough are winless in their past four home league games (D3 L1), last having a longer run at the Riverside Stadium in January/February 2024 (5).

• Millwall have won nine of their 19 Championship away games this season – only once have they reached double figures on the road in a single second tier campaign, doing so in 1987-88 when they were promoted to the top-flight (10).

• No player has had more shots (44), more shots on target (11) or accumulated a higher xG (2.4) without scoring in the Championship this season than Middlesbrough's Aidan Morris.

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Tommy Conway believes "there's no-one better in football to have behind you" than Andy Robertson as he tries to cement his place on the left side of Scotland's attack for this summer's World Cup finals.

The Middlesbrough striker realises he is one of those in the current squad who are in the position of "not knowing if we are going to go" to the Americas and face a "massive couple of months" to prove themselves to head coach Steve Clarke.

But he believes he "made an impact" as he made his first Scotland start despite the 1-0 defeat in Saturday's friendly at home to Japan.

"I really enjoyed it out there," 23-year-old Conway said. "I felt like it took me a while to get into the game, but once we got to grips with it, I naturally got into the game.

"We were unfortunate to lose the game, but we'll take the positives from it and go on Tuesday.

"Obviously it's been a while since I played for Scotland, but I like to think I took into the game what we've been working on in training.

"It wasn't too dissimilar to what I'm doing at club level. That's more or less where I've been playing - off the left and trying to come in and make things happen."

Conway said captain Andy Robertson, the Liverpool left-back, was "talking me through the game".

"There's no-one better in football to have behind you," he said. "Hopefully it is a combination on which we can build.

"When you are not having an impact in possession, you've got to have an impact out of possession and I feel like me and Robbo did that in the first half.

"In the second half, I thought our press was a lot better and allowed us to get up the pitch and in someone's face and that is a strength of mine."

Conway thought Saturday's match against Japan, and Tuesday's against Ivory Coast, would be good preparation for facing "players from three different continents" at the World Cup.

"Some of it I feel I have ever come across before, in terms of what they pose physically - they are sharp and they are fast and tactically they are good as well," he added of Japan.

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Gateshead have signed Middlesbrough's Shea Connor and Rio Patterson-Powell on loan for the last month of the National League season.

Goalkeeper Connor, 20, has played for Boro's under-21 team this season along with winger Patterson-Powell, also 20, who has been on the bench for the first-team in the Championship.

They join a Gateshead side, 20th in the table, two points clear of relegation with six matches to play.

Middlesbrough boss Kim Hellberg has challenged his players to rediscover their best form in front of goal when the Championship resumes following the international break.

Boro signed off with a goalless draw at relegation-threatened Blackburn Rovers, and in doing so lost ground on league leaders Coventry City, while failing to take advantage of promotion rivals Ipswich Town and Millwall playing out a draw.

Goals have not been hard to come by since Hellberg's appointment in November, but as the conclusion of this season nears, the Swede hopes for better fortunes in the run-in.

He told BBC Radio Tees: "We're doing our best, we kept a clean sheet away from home, we're trying to score, we created a lot of opportunities, but it didn't fall for us.

"Of course we need to score goals. If we don't, we won't win games.

"It's my responsibility to find ways of scoring goals for the players. Sometimes it feels weird because, over my time here, we've scored the most goals in that time.

"Still, we had that spell where we went four games without scoring a goal and we've scored less in home games, where we've scored many goals before. There are ups and downs.

"It's about the creativity and we must keep creating chances. That gives us a lot of belief because, otherwise, if we were struggling in that part...sometimes you need things to fall for you.

"In the first half, we had chances. Then that would have opened up the game. It is what it is. We work with them everyday to keep getting better - that is of course my responsibility."

"I do believe Ipswich potentially have got more ways to win. If Middlesbrough don't unlock that formula of breaking teams down when they are sitting in that lower block and making things hard, that can do for them in terms of that top-two place."

Coventry are seven points clear at the top of the Championship and look well set for a place in next season's Premier League.

In the latest 72+ podcast, the team discuss why Ipswich Town might be the favourites for the second automatic promotion spot.

They also preview Saturday's huge game at Portman Road between Ipswich and a Millwall side eyeing the same prize.

Listen on BBC Sounds

Blackburn Rovers will hope to upset the hunt for automatic promotion places once again when they welcome second placed Middlesbrough on Saturday (12:30 GMT).

Rovers beat a 10-man Millwall last time out to prevent the Lions from leapfrogging Boro into the top two.

The Teesside club are still under threat from Millwall though, as well as third placed Ipswich Town, and have failed to win either of their past two Championship games (D1 L1).

However, a win will mean just as much to Rovers, who are only three points above the relegation zone and seeking more breathing space at the bottom.

• The last four Championship meetings between Blackburn (1) and Middlesbrough (2) have produced just three goals, with this season's reverse fixture finishing 0-0 at the Riverside.

• Middlesbrough won in this exact fixture last season (2-0 in April 2025); they haven't won consecutive league matches at Ewood Park since the 1980s (won three between 1986 and 1989).

• Blackburn have won three of their seven Championship games under Michael O'Neill (D1 L3), as many victories as they had in their 18 league games prior to O'Neill's arrival (W3 D7 L8).

• Middlesbrough are winless in their last two Championship games (D1 L1); they only scored one goal across those two matches, despite attempting 53 shots, amassing 5.05 expected goals, and having 122 touches in the opposition box.

• Morgan Whittaker has averaged a goal or assist every 139 minutes under Kim Hellberg; his best minutes per goal involvement ratio under any manager in the Championship (min. 5 games).

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There have been plenty of contentious decisions in the 2025-26 Championship season so far.

Offside goals given, perfectly good goals ruled out, red card offences missed, penalties not given, dubious spot-kicks awarded. You name it.

With the video assistant referee (VAR) only used for the play-off final, the outcome of every second-tier game in the regular season can hinge on how on-field officials see incidents in real time.

• Would you want VAR introduced for every league game in the Championship?

• If so, why?

• And if not, let us know your reasons.

You can share your thoughts on VAR here or comment below, and we will publish a follow-up article soon with a selection of your responses.

Middlesbrough boss Kim Hellberg spoke to BBC Radio Tees after his side's 1-1 draw with Bristol City.

"It's tough to lose two points in the last minute against a team that you are playing off the pitch for 90 minutes, but it's football," he said.

"We should have killed the game off earlier, so it doesn't come down to those small margins. I'm proud of the performance but disappointed of the result.

On seven minutes of stoppage time: "Teams are coming here and they are not trying to play and then they add on seven minutes for a team that didn't want to play from the first minute.

"It's ridiculous. It is not the football we want. There was one minute added on in the first half. It makes no sense."

Middlesbrough boss Kim Hellberg says his side are in a "happy place" despite a 1-0 loss to Charlton Athletic putting them in danger of being caught in the automatic promotion places.

The loss has left the Teesside club within striking distance of Millwall, while fourth placed Ipswich Town trail by four points.

However, Hellberg can only see the positives of their promising league placement.

"We are in an unbelievable position, nine games left to play," Hellberg told BBC Radio Tees.

"There's been a lot of times where it's been tough and we've lost games and they [the players] have been bouncing back. When we've not played good, they've been bouncing back.

"We are fighting for a lot of good things and that's a happy place to be at."

The side next face Bristol City at the Riverside on Saturday (12:30 GMT).

The Robins handed Hellberg his first loss as Boro boss but the Swede reflects on their last meeting positively.

"It was the first time I felt like we were good for it," Hellberg added.

"There's good memories from it, even if we didn't win it."

Listen to the full interview on BBC Sounds

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Middlesbrough will be looking to get their promotion push back on track following defeat last time out against Charlton when they welcome Bristol City to the Riverside on Saturday (12:30 GMT).

That loss was Boro's first in five games and left them eight points adrift of leaders Coventry City.

A 2-0 defeat at Leicester means Bristol City go into this game on the back of three in a row, with their play-off hopes taking a hit as a result. The Robins are now 12th and seven points off sixth-place.

• Middlesbrough have lost their last five league games against Bristol City and are winless in eight (D2 L6) since a 2-1 victory in August 2021.

• Bristol City have won on eight of their last 12 away league visits to Boro (D2 L2), having won just two of their first 30 there.

• Middlesbrough have won their last six home league matches that kicked off at 12.30pm, scoring 17 goals and only conceding three.

• Bristol City's Emil Riis has eight goals in nine Championship appearances against Middlesbrough – it's the most any player has scored against them in the division since the 2004-05 rebrand.

• Bristol City manager Gerhard Struber has lost on his two previous league visits to Middlesbrough, 1-0 in 2019-20 and 2-1 in 2020-21 as Barnsley manager.

Middlesbrough manager Kim Hellberg was frustrated with his side's efforts in front of goal in the damaging 1-0 defeat to Charlton.

Boro had 34 shots on goal, but Will Mannion in the Charlton goal was largely untroubled until he saved well from Hayden Hackney late on.

Boro are now just one point ahead of Millwall in third place.

Hellberg told BBC Radio Tees: "It has been a theme where we have had a lot of opportunities and not won games. We have not been good enough in terms of scoring goals and we have two points from three home games.

"We scored seven goals in our last two games and could have scored seven today but we have to keep working and keep improving. It would be worse if we had only two chances all night.

"We need to win as many games as possible. We will try and win them all."