Middlesbrough

Kim Hellberg said Middlesbrough are working hard to find their scoring touch but he retains "all the confidence in the world" that it will return.

Boro have slipped five points behind Championship leaders Coventry City following defeat at the Sky Blues and frustrating back-to-back home draws against Oxford United and Leicester City.

Hellberg's side dominated the latter two games and registered a total of 41 shots in them, but only 11 were on target with one goal to show for them, against the Foxes on Tuesday night.

"We are trying to react to it and work from it - we keep moving forward," he told BBC Radio Tees.

"I think we have scored the third most goals in the league since I arrived. We will continue to work on scoring more goals and finding solutions.

"We had four games in a row [from 20 December to 1 January] when we didn't score for seven hours and we tried to work from it to become better, and we did, [scoring 13 over the next four matches].

"Now we're doing the same thing, we don't score enough. And we're still creating a lot of opportunities, but we haven't been efficient enough in those situations."

Hellberg refuted the suggestion his players were lacking energy against Leicester.

"There are a lot of players who have played almost every minute," he said. "We have a thin squad, a lot of players coming back from injury.

"I don't think the energy has been a problem but you can always have more energy. [The problem is] we haven't been quite good enough in situations where we could and should score goals."

Despite the 'blip,' going into the weekend fixtures, with Hellberg's side headed to Birmingham on Monday (20:00 GMT), Boro remain four points clear of third-placed Millwall, though Ipswich Town, six points back in fourth, do have two games in hand.

"I have all the confidence in the world," he said. "We have one loss in nine games, we draw two games [but] when you look at them we created a lot of opportunities.

"We have to keep working, keep finding ways to score and improve. That's what we're trying to do."

Birmingham saw their eight-game unbeaten league run come to an end at Millwall on Wednesday to leave them five points short of the play-off places before the weekend games.

Blues have still only tasted defeat at St Andrew's once so far this season but only Coventry City (29) have taken more points on the road than second-placed Middlesbrough's 28 in the Championship.

• Birmingham City have lost 11 of their past 15 league games against Middlesbrough (W3 D1), losing each of the last six since a 2-0 win in October 2021.

• Middlesbrough have won their past four away league games against Birmingham, only having longer runs against Rotherham (six between 1956-1962) and Liverpool (five between 1957 and 1960).

• No Championship side has lost fewer home league games than Birmingham this season (one). Their 3-2 loss to Hull in October is their only defeat in their past 41 league games at St Andrew's (W29 D11).

• Middlesbrough have won five of their past eight away league games (L3), as many as they had in their previous 20 (D5 L10).

• Morgan Whittaker has been involved in more away goals than any other Middlesbrough player in the Championship this season (eight – four goals, four assists).

Image source, Shutterstock

Former Championship winger Jobi McAnuff believes Ipswich Town will win automatic promotion to the Premier League at the expense of Middlesbrough.

The Tractor Boys are six points behind second-placed Boro with two games in hand, while Millwall are four points back in third, having played the same number of matches as the top two.

Kim Hellberg's side have gone three games without a win, losing 3-1 to leaders Coventry before drawing at home to relegation-threatened Oxford and Leicester.

"I was really keen to see how they reacted to that [defeat by Coventry] because they were in such good form going into that game playing some brilliant football," McAnuff told the Football Daily 72+ EFL podcast.

"What you want to do after what was a disappointing result is get back on that winning run as quickly as you can, particularly with the situation and Ipswich lurking with a couple of games in hand."

McAnuff says Ipswich have resources that "other clubs do not have" with the ability to bring striker George Hirst off the bench and sign players such as Anis Mehmeti and Dan Neil in January.

"I just feel that over the course of the whole season, that will come to fruition for them," said McAnuff, who won the Championship with Reading in 2011-12.

"You talk about the manager [Kieran McKenna], so calm, he's someone who has been there, he's got promotion from the league.

"I think he is going to have a huge part to play and that then also radiates through the dressing room.

"For him and Ipswich Town, that is what is going to get them over the line. I believe they will be in the top two. I genuinely do believe that."

When asked who would drop out of the top two, McAnuff added: "I'm going to say Middlesbrough. As much as performances have been okay the last couple of games, I do think they have a little bit of an issue breaking down teams where they sit deep."

Middlesbrough captain Hayden Hackney says they need to be sharper and "almost force the ball in" to avoid dropping further points in their bid for automatic promotion.

Boro are without a win in their past three Championship games following the defeat at Coventry and back-to-back home draws against Oxford and Leicester, having won six on the bounce before this recent mini blip.

Tuesday night's 1-1 draw with the Foxes was the second time in four days Kim Hellberg's side have failed to beat a side in the relegation zone at the Riverside.

It means Boro now sit two points behind leaders Coventry, who visit Sheffield United on Wednesday, while third-placed Ipswich are six points behind but have two games in hand.

"That's the word, frustration," Hackney told BBC Radio Tees.

"Maybe [we need] something falling for us inside the box, getting that half a yard to finish. Maybe [opposition teams] are sitting off a little bit more, a little bit deeper in the low block.

"But I think it's just our sharpness and maybe what's fallen for us in the last couple of games where the run into the box would be found by the assist.

"I know it sounds easy but maybe that - and having shots and deflections maybe fall your way."

The 23-year-old midfielder does not think Middlesbrough are in a "sticky spot" and says it is "definitely not a lack of effort from the lads".

"They're all giving 100%," he added. "I think it's just touching up on those areas in the final third, which we will do. We'll look back at that and try and improve."

Kim Hellberg remained defiant after his Middlesbrough side again dropped points against a team battling relegation.

Boro have played out two draws since Coventry regained top spot in the Championship by beating them.

Having played out a goalless draw with Oxford United at the weekend, they drew 1-1 with Leicester at the Riverside Stadium.

A win would have taken them level on points with Coventry, but they are six clear of third-placed Ipswich and Hull in fourth, so remain very much on course for promotion.

Head coach Hellberg told BBC Radio Tees: "It makes it one loss in the last nine, but of course you want to win games. We weren't good enough to win today.

"From the last two games we created a lot of opportunities but for us now the ball is not going into the net to win it.

"But in those games we have two more points to our tally. We wanted more but that's done, so we have to work from it and keep improving.

"You take points you get at this stage of the season and keep working. We're in an unbelievable position and we will keep working hard to keep it.

"It was two good teams going at each other. They have a lot of quality and we have the same.

Ahead of Tuesday's visit of struggling Leicester, Kim Hellberg says Middlesbrough need to sharpen up in the final third

Against Oxford United at the Riverside on Saturday Boro enjoyed nearly 75% of the possession and mustered 24 shots on the U's goal but had to settle for a point from a goalless draw to lose ground on leaders Coventry.

While Boro have scored nine goals in their past six home games, conceding only once, eight of those goals came in two games against Southampton and Preston in January.

After the frustration of Saturday, manager Hellberg told BBC Radio Tees: "It's good the games keep coming.

"Almost every team we have played have ended up in a low block. We need to get better on it.

"No Championship team has been in the opposition box as many times as we did against Oxford but we need to create more from it. If you look back it's unbelievable how many opportunities we should have.

"In a normal game with some more quality maybe we could have scored four or five. We have won games at home with less opportunities than we had in this game.

"We need to keep improving. We need to be better at putting the ball into the box from more narrow positions.

"We need to keep working. For us it's key to hurt teams in different ways."

Leicester are winless in eight games and sit in the bottom three thanks to a six-point deduction but stopped the rot after four straight defeats as they were pegged back to draw 2-2 at Stoke late on in Gary Rowett's first game in charge on Saturday.

"I saw the game against Stoke," Hellberg, 38, said. "They have absolutely top-quality players who have played in the Premier League and Champions League. It's an unbelievable squad.

"It's weird that they are so [low], though they have had the points deduction of course."

Image source, Opta

Middlesbrough will seek to get back to winning ways as they welcome beleaguered Leicester to the Riverside on Tuesday (19:45 GMT).

Boro followed-up their defeat at Championship leaders Coventry with a goalless draw at home to second-bottom Oxford United on Saturday to lie three points behind the Sky Blues at the summit, though with a six-point advantage over third-placed Millwall.

The Foxes remain in the bottom-three, a point adrift of West Brom, after being pegged back to draw 2-2 at Stoke on Saturday, though it ended a run of four straight league defeats.

City remain winless in seven Championship games on the road since early December, however.

• Having been winless in 14 league games against Leicester between 2003 and 2017 (D8 L6), Middlesbrough have now won two of their past three against the Foxes (D1).

• Leicester have only lost two of their 13 league games against Middlesbrough at the Riverside Stadium (W6 D5), though one of these was their most recent visit in November 2023.

• Middlesbrough are unbeaten in their past five league games against Leicester (W2 D3), last having a longer run between 1930 and 1934 (9 games).

• Middlesbrough have alternated between defeat (2) and victory (2) in their past four midweek (Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday) league games, beating Stoke City 2-1 last time out.

• Leicester are winless in their past 12 midweek (Tues, Weds, Thurs) league games (D4 L8), alternating between a draw and a defeat in their eight in the Championship this season.

Nathan Albon
5 Live Sport reporter at the Riverside

Image source, Getty Images

As the gulls swooped around the Riverside looking for tasty morsels… there were no such delights for Middlesbrough today.

Real sense of opportunity missed as second from top played second from bottom.

Oxford clung on at times, but came with a clear gameplan. They came on the team bus, and they parked that bus… Blocks, tackles, clearances, the lot.

And they were a threat on the break - twice hitting the woodwork through Stanley Mills and Myles Peart-Harris in the first half.

So Oxford drag themselves closer to safety, but they're still five points adrift.

And Middlesbrough, who were two points clear before losing to Coventry on Monday, now find themselves winless in two and three points behind the leaders

Middlesbrough boss Kim Hellberg refused to dwell on the disappointment of being held at home to relegation-threatened Oxford United.

Boro missed the chance to close the gap on leaders Coventry as they drew 0-0 with Oxford, who hit the woodwork twice in the first half.

Hellberg told BBC Radio Tees: "We knew that was going to be the game. If we score early, it could open up a little bit. We didn't, they had some chances in the first half, they could have scored.

"We had some chances through the game, especially in the second half.

"At the end it's 0-0, there's no goal, you have to take the point and move on.

"This is the part when you play against these teams when they defend with their heart all the time.

"We should have scored, that's how it is, but we didn't. It's one point to add to the tally and we keep moving on."

Boro, who are three points off the league leaders with a six-point gap to Millwall in third, host another relegation-threatened side in Leicester City on Tuesday

Middlesbrough had their six-game winning streak in the Championship ended by Coventry City on Monday night - a result which meant the Sky Blues returned to the top of the table and Boro dropped to second place.

Oxford United are without a win in their past four games, including three defeats, and are six points adrift of safety with 14 games remaining.

• Middlesbrough are unbeaten in their past 11 league games against Oxford (W8 D3), with their last defeat against them coming in February 1990 (1-3) under Bruce Rioch.

• Oxford have lost 11 of their 14 away league matches against Middlesbrough (W2 D1), scoring just nine goals across the 14 matches (0.6 per game).

• Middlesbrough have won their past three home league matches without conceding a goal – they last won and kept a clean sheet in four straight league games at the Riverside between April and September 2018 (5), under Tony Pulis.

• Only Sheffield Wednesday (1) have scored fewer Championship goals in 2026 than Oxford (4). However, all four of those have been netted in away games, only failing to score in one of their four matches on the road since the turn of the year.

• Middlesbrough are the only side yet to drop a point from a winning position in the Championship this season, going on to win all 18 games when taking the lead.

Middlesbrough's upcoming game against Oxford United on Saturday (15:00 GMT) is a must-win as they fight for automatic promotion, said the Northern Echo's Dom Shaw.

The U's are six points away from safety in the bottom three, while Middlesbrough's defeat to Coventry City on Monday means they now trail the Sky Blues by one point at the top of the table.

The Teesside club then host a struggling Leicester City side on Tuesday, 24 February (19:45 GMT), who are also in the relegation zone after a six point deduction.

But while the journalist sees Oxford as a "kind fixture" for Boro following a difficult loss to the league leaders, he does believe a victory will go a long way in rebuilding morale.

"If Boro can win both of those games - and even better, if they can win at least one emphatically - [it will help] get rid of any anxiety in the stands even before it's even allowed to settle in," Shaw told BBC Radio Tees.

"There was such a buzz about the place, about Boro, about the town ahead of Coventry. That hasn't disappeared because of one defeat.

"If you go and win well against Oxford on Saturday, that Coventry defeat will be forgotten about."

Listen to Shaw's full thoughts on BBC Sounds

Listen to more Middlesbrough content on BBC Sounds

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Puma's Rainbow ball will return to the English Football League as part of an on-going campaign against discrimination and homophobia.

The special edition rainbow ball was introduced in 2024 to mark LGBTQ+ History Month and will be used at every EFL game from 20 February until 1 March.

Manufacturers Puma will make a donation to Football v Homophobia for every goal scored with their rainbow ball across the Championship, League One and League Two.

The donations will help support education against homophobia and promote inclusion across the season.

The EFL have released a video, external to coincide with the campaign which features a Preston North End fan who was charged with a hate crime following homophobic chanting during an FA Cup fixture against Chelsea.

The rainbow ball will also feature in EFL partner EA Sports' FC 26 video game.

"The rainbow ball is a powerful symbol of the values we uphold across the EFL all season long," EFL chief executive officer Trevor Birch said.

"It not only reflects our longstanding commitment to ensuring the League is representative of all its diverse communities, but also reminds us that we all have a role to play in creating an environment in which everyone feels they truly belong."

Image source, Getty Images

We asked you what you thought of Monday night's performance from Middlesbrough and whether it had given you any doubts in the promotion race.

But fear not, confidence still seems to be high despite the loss to Coventry City (mostly!).

Here is what you had to say:

Andrew: I think this was just a glitch. We have a great team, great manager and a wonderful club owner. I still think we can get automatic promotion and still excellent chance of finishing top!

Guy: Boro's next two games are home to Oxford and Leicester City, while Coventry go to West Bromwich Albion at lunchtime on Saturday then Sheffield United on Wednesday.

Boro could be top again by 17:00 GMT on Saturday and I fully expect them to be top by the time Coventry kick-off at Bramall Lane.

All that said, the title is gravy. Guarantee me second place now and I'll drive the trophy to the CBS myself.

Alan: Thought Sol could have prevented the first two goals. It would have been a penalty at either end. Still our bogey team but if we beat Oxford and they don't beat West Bromwich Albion we are back on top.

Paul: Middlesbrough were lethargic and looked nervous in the first half. They were lucky to be only 1-0 down!

Second half they improved and could have got a draw, but made two schoolboy errors that deserved to be punished.

Coventry battled hard, were gritty and played like the away side. They were not very creative though, and won that game because Middlesbrough gifted it to them.

Middlesbrough will need to be more combative in future games, because they were bullied and overpowered at times (particularly in the first half).

Paul: The stats don't lie. Boro had 71.5% possession, double the number of shots on goal and more than double touches in the box against Coventry. Still five points clear of play-off teams and two of the bottom three at home next games. Keep the faith!

Neil: Boro were bullied in the first half and then gifted goals to Coventry in the second.

If they keep faith in their ability to pass through teams they'll beat most in the Championship, but last night might have shown others the way to stop them.

Still, I'd prefer to watch Boro's passing football than Coventry's 80's throwback style.

"There's still a lot of football to play. We've just had six wins on the bounce, an unbelievable run we've had to get us where we are. I've seen enough from this side to know that we'll be up there."

BBC Radio Tees' Rob Law, Neil Maddison and Dana Malt discuss Middlesbrough's 3-1 defeat at title rivals Coventry City and how it impacts the bid for promotion from the Championship, alongside reaction from head coach Kim Hellberg and defender Luke Ayling.

Listen to more Middlesbrough coverage from BBC Radio Tees on BBC Sounds.

A loss at the CBS Arena on Monday means Middlesbrough once again find themselves trailing Coventry City at the top of the table.

The result ended the Teesside club's six-match winning streak, but should it leave them feeling disheartened?

What did you think of your side's performance, Boro fans?

Was this a season-defining result? Or do you still fancy your chances of lifting that Championship trophy come the end of the season?

Let us know your thoughts on Monday's match here and come back later to see a selection of your verdicts.

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Middlesbrough head coach Kim Hellberg says his side conceded two "terrible goals" to send them to defeat in the top-of-the-table Championship clash at Coventry City.

Trailing 1-0 at half-time, Boro let in a goal from goalkeeper Carl Rushworth's long kick and then after reducing the deficit to 2-1, Matt Targett's needless handball allowed Haji Wright to complete his hat-trick and seal a 3-1 success for the Sky Blues.

It ended Boro's six-match winning run and allowed the Sky Blues to jump back above them, one point clear at the top.

"The second half in general was very good from us," Hellberg told BBC Radio Tees.

"We created a lot of opportunities and we had two good chances but ended up conceding with a kick behind our line that bounced in our penalty box and it's a terrible goal to concede.

"We built momentum again, scored to make it 2-1 and had a lot of energy for that last part of the game and then it's a handball from nowhere.

"You cannot give away those type of goals to a very good team.

"Terrible timings, terrible goals. They don't have to play in our half but they've almost got two goals from never being there."

Image source, Opta

Coventry City welcome Middlesbrough for a vital clash between the Championship's top two sides on Monday night (kick-off 20:00 GMT).

The Sky Blues have won just two of their past eight games - and only four of their previous 13 (D4 L5) - to see their 10-point lead wiped out by Boro, who are two points clear at the top.

Kim Hellberg's side are in excellent form and have scored 16 goals in a six-game winning run in the league.

• Coventry have won each of their past five league games against Middlesbrough, with each victory coming by at least a two-goal margin.

• Middlesbrough have lost six of their past seven away league games against Coventry (W1), losing each of their previous four visits without scoring a single goal.

• Since the start of December, Coventry have averaged just one goal a game in the Championship (13 goals in 13 games), having averaged 2.8 in their first 18 games this term (50 goals).

• Middlesbrough have won their past six league matches and could win seven in a row for the first time since May 1987 (7 in the third tier). They last had a longer winning streak in the second tier of English football in April 1974 (9).

• Coventry failed to score in their draw against Oxford last time out, despite attempting 24 shots and producing an xG total of 2.3. They have never failed to score in consecutive league games under Frank Lampard, last doing so in October 2023 (3 under Mark Robins).