The talking points after Middlesbrough’s 1-0 victory over Birmingham City
Middlesbrough’s stellar form continued after the international break, as they defeated Birmingham City with little evidence of their two-week hiatus.
They had to abandon it late in an almost total control performance as opportunities went begging and John Ruddy produced a masterful display in the visitors’ goal. In what was, paradoxically, their scrappiest attack of the afternoon, Morgan Rogers scored the late game winning goal for Boro after coming off the bench.
However, there was enough to be positive about after another commanding victory over a strong Birmingham team that was ranked sixth going into the match. Here are four key points or takeaways from the victory.
Dan Barlaser got his chance to start for Boro after Jonny Howson missed the team’s first two games due to illness before to the break. Even though he played effectively in both matches, Howson’s substitution for Michael Carrick in this one seemed like a significant turning point for his tenure at the team.
It’s no secret that Barlaser hasn’t played much since joining Boro in January, and although he undoubtedly wishes he could have played more, it’s safe to say he hasn’t always been able to truly establish himself in the club. However, given Saturday’s evidence, that might be about to change.
Prior to the game, an analysis of Wayne Rooney’s favourite style revealed that he enjoys overloading the middle of the pitch and building through it. It was a hectic afternoon ahead for Boro’s centre midfield, where taking control of the situation may be crucial to winning.
Although Barlaser and Hayden Hackney prevailed in that fight, as the score indicates, labelling it a battle would really imply that it was much more of a struggle than the two gave it credit for. They performed admirably the entire time, and Barlaser passed a crucial test to demonstrate his ability to be a regular in this side. There was some very wonderful passing range, and it’s difficult to dispute that this was his finest in a
Two players were singled out for special attention after the pre-match team announcements. In addition to Barlaser, Lukas Engel also maintained his spot in the squad against Birmingham, a team that has benefited from quick forward play this year.
Before the international break, Engel was beginning to show improvement, but there were still concerns about his defensive weakness. Similar to how Pol Valentin did in those terrifying forty-five minutes at Sheffield Wednesday, Patrick Roberts took advantage of this during a 20-minute stint for Sunderland and too easily slipped past the Dane.
Engel’s recent positive performances have mostly focused on his ball handling skills, and he carried that into the match against Birmingham, showing some excellent ball play and even one spectacular goal that needed to be saved early in the second half. But his defensive performance in this one was maybe even more encouraging.
Even though Rooney’s team prefers to press their forward men inside, Engel still had to deal with the quick and vivacious Cody Drameh. He carried it out with a great deal more confidence than we’ve seen in him before. His desire was evident as he appeared much more self-assured. Even in situations where he was defeated, he would bounce back quickly and, nine times out of ten, manage to steal the ball.
Carrick stated that it was the team’s collective duty to stand up and assume the responsibility of scoring goals after Boro’s defence allowed them to lose a lot of goals this summer. He wanted to see the goals shared, with each of his players having the opportunity to score one, even if he would have loved for someone to step up and replace Chuba Akpom’s 29 goals on an individual basis.
And so far this season, that has been followed; Rogers’ first league goal for the team makes him Boro’s 11th distinct Championship striker to far. Moreover, eight different players have scored goals for Boro in their previous ten league games, dating back to their 3-2 victory against Watford, in total.
Being in a position where you can rely on numerous outlets for goals. It would be nice to see at least one forward put themselves forward as the main man, however. Josh Coburn, for example, will know he should have scored at least one on Saturday to add to his tally for the season.
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