John Powls looks ahead to Boro's clash with Millwall, a side who are in the bottom three but have had a decent run of April results
I like what Karanka said after the Burnley game about the character and intensity his team has shown in their recent run of five wins on the trot, mainly against sides above them and pressing for promotion.
It’s even better that he’s stressed recently that they have to be every bit as focused and ready to show their personality when they face a side at the wrong end of the table, from their visitors’ point of view, tomorrow.
Millwall’s decent run of April results – two away wins at Wigan and Forest and a home draw with Watford - might help the Boro Head Coach in making that point.
Without that run, which still has them in the bottom three, Ollie’s Men might already be gone but they still have Championship survival to fight for and The Reds will have to be right at it again at The Riverside in the first of their Easter fixtures.
It looks most likely that the ex-Boro Lion most likely to start on his return to The Riverside is Nicky Bailey with Scott McDonald having been on the bench on occasions recently and Justin Hoyte not even that.
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They will be without Ed Upson through injury but their other top scorers, Morison and Woolford are available, though the former has been a sub most often of late.
Chaplow is fit to start in midfield.
For Boro, it looks like George Friend is fit enough to start and Karanka won’t need to look for a stand in left back or left wing back in a 3-5-2.
Manu Ledesma gave it a very decent go in both roles against Burnley in last Saturday’s win at Turf Moor but, sometimes, that’s about the novel challenge leading to a player increasing their focus for one game.
It’s helpful not to have to stretch that or the changed set up to a second outing with a more conventional back four available.
With Ayala suspended for this game and Big Ben Gibson completing his two game ban, it’s just as well that the increasingly impressive Kenneth Omeruo is available again to partner Woody after his enforced absence.
You’d have to agree with the experienced Teesside centre back that Boro aren’t a dirty side, despite their ‘two yellow’ red card littered season.
But their Head Coach puts a value on individual and team discipline, technique and organisation as well as wanting to keep his squad relatively tight in numbers.
For all those reasons, he’ll want less down time due to bans for next term and the rest of this run in.
With Butterfield, Whitehead, Chalobah and Leadbitter all available, Karanka has got one of those ‘nice problems to have’ that all who select teams profess to like.
Rather like the permutations of available defenders, Boro have shown they can succeed with whichever two get the nod for the engine room roles.
Tomlin will be kept on his toes by Butterfield for the number ten role, though they prospered in harness last Saturday with the ex-Posh man’s surging run setting the ex-Norwich midfielder for Boro’s goal.
Danny Graham and Albert Adomah will surely start, as might Luke Williams for this Riverside encounter.
In terms of ‘next season prep’ developments, I have to say that I was very pleased to see that Richie Smallwood’s year contract extension option has been taken up by Boro, reflecting what he put in for his home town club earlier and his performances for Rotherham, flying high in League One.
Very good news, I think, and – as expected - Karanka has now been as good as his word for at least a couple of those he sent out on loan to get regular starts and that’s important too.
Dimi Konstantopoulos is also amongst those doing himself no harm in terms of a Riverside contract and his World cup ambitions with Greece, apparently. All to the good.
Kei Kamara has joined the ranks of those who’ve had to go under the surgeon’s knife recently and, though he may may it back before the season’s close, he won’t be available tomorrow.
Despite the unattractive opposition, it would be good to see a couple of thousand on the holiday home attendance and for the team to give them something to savour by giving it a right go again and completing a second double in successive games, beating Millwall convincingly for a second time this season.
C’mon Boro!!!
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