Middlesbrough 1-1 West BromHome team scorersAlvaro Negredo 17 Pen
Away team scorersJames Morrison 6
During a week in which Aitor Karanka made his feelings about Middlesbrough’s transfer activity clear, this all too familiar performance will not have changed his train of thought. Boro demonstrated a steady defence, competent midfield but the kind of anodyne attack that can cause a team to slide steadily towards the trap.
This was perhaps a fair result although West Bromwich Albion were far the more dangerous attacking proposition. James Morrison gave them the lead and Boro equalised through Alvaro Negredo’s penalty, before Tony Pulis’s team struck the post twice in the second half.
It means Middlesbrough have not won a league game in six – since mid‑December – and continue their struggles in the final third. The January signings Patrick Bamford and Rudy Gestede were late substitutes but they made little impact, as Karanka ponders an end-of-season run with little proven firepower.
Things started terribly for Karanka and Boro, as West Brom went ahead after just six minutes. Pulis’s side began the game far the brighter, attacking with purpose and looking physically superior.
Morrison struck in the sixth minute and, as the home fans struggled to come to terms with their team’s lacklustre tempo and going a goal down to one of their former academy products, the restlessness inside the Riverside ballooned.
Albion swung in a corner from the left and after a momentary melee inside the penalty area Darren Fletcher managed to steer the ball back out to the edge of the area. Morrison was waiting and he swept the ball first time low and into Victor Valdés’s bottom-left corner.
West Brom were on top and Chris Brunt almost scored a spectacular second, chesting a high ball down on the edge of the box before crashing a right-footed volley on to the roof of Valdés’s net.
However, Boro were soon level. It was against the flow of the match but Negredo was certainly grateful, winning a penalty after being challenged by Gareth McAuley. The defender did get a toe on the ball, but to get there he had scythed the Spanish striker in two. Negredo calmly rolled the ball in past Ben Foster and Middlesbrough were a team renewed. The home fans sang in support of their manager and the owner, Steve Gibson, sensing their own role in helping secure a much-needed win.
Adama Traoré was his usual lively self, and his final delivery seemed improved. He even produced a fine block to deny Salomon Rondon as the striker moved in on goal, before Boro came close to being awarded a second penalty; Allan Nyom clearly tripped Cristhian Stuani in a tangle of legs but the referee, Stuart Atwell, was unmoved.
Boro could have easily ended the half in front, Nyom almost deflecting the ball inadvertently into his own goal following a wicked deep cross from Traoré, but Ben Foster dived brilliantly to his right to save and then block the resulting rebound before Valdés kept out Craig Dawson’s powerful header in first-half injury time.
Boro increased their intensity after half-time but struggled to craft any clear scoring opportunities. In contrast, West Brom were not finding their fluency of the opening quarter yet they should have gone in front once more. Nacer Chadli found space down the right, jinked to the right and chipped an inviting ball into the centre. There was Matt Phillips running in at pace but the midfielder’s diving header smacked Valdés’s left-hand post, before Rondon sliced the rebound on to the opposite post.
It was a let-off for Boro, and a warning sign of West Brom’s attacking ability. They nearly earned a slice of luck themselves, though, when Adam Clayton surged down the right in a rapid counter-attack, sliding the ball across goal where the backtracking Fletcher nearly deflected into his own net. Foster stretched high to tip over.
In the end it was West Brom who looked likeliest to win this. Phillips flashed an effort wide from a James McClean cross in the 71st minute before a powerful strike from Brunt forced a smart save from Valdés.
Karanka brought on Bamford with 20 minutes remaining, but Boro continued to struggle in the final third. It is easy to see why their manager wanted more firepower in January.
Guardian
