Real Football Man All of the Football, All of the time
Middlesbrough stint in the top flight has not been all that memorable and their status as a Premier League club was revoked in a meek fashion after a 3-0 defeat away at Chelsea on Monday. It was a result which confirmed what for many was the inevitable and that inevitably was relegation.
After starting the season relatively brightly they were hamstrung by a criminal lack of goals, they may have only been losing games by the odd goal but the key was the fact that they failed to find the net with something of an alarming regularity.
It was what ultimately did for Aitor Karanka as he was sacked in March as club owner Steve Gibson felt he needed to roll the dice in a bid to help Middlesbrough beat the drop. The only problem was with the position that ‘Boro were in it was difficult to appoint a saviour.
With no-one forthcoming to assist Boro’s relegation battle it meant that Steve Agnew was handed the reign as caretaker manager. The football has been slightly easier on the eye since but by that point the rot had already set in and relegation was only a few weeks away.
Arguably the only highlight of 2017 for ‘Boro has been the defeat of follow relegated Sunderland last month, that breathed a small bit of hope into their battle to beat the drop but if anything it just prolonged the agony by a few weeks
With the return to The Championship confirmed they only have pride left to fight for and this afternoon they play host to perennial mid table side Southampton while looking to end this forgettable season with something resembling a flourish.
Southampton come into this game having had a busy week, they came away from Anfield last Sunday with a well earned point but had to make do with being second best on Wednesday as they were brushed aside by Arsenal at St Mary’s.
The first 45 minutes between Southampton and Arsenal left very little to write home about and for Saints fans the next 45 were not all that better as Alexis Sanchez and Oliver Giroud scored the goals that have reignited their hopes of a top four finish.
That meant it is now 5 games without a win for Southampton, a run which has only heralded two points for their troubles. Surprisingly though they still find themselves in the top half of the table and should results go their way this weekend they could move as high as 8th place.
It just goes to show how tight the mid table pack is this season, there are five points separating West Brom in 8th and Watford in 15th. You could pick any number in that range and Southampton could still very much end up finishing there such is the amount of interchange.
In fairness to Southampton though the teams below them have hardly been pulling up trees in their bid to finish in the top 10. If you can go 5 unbeaten and still stay in the same position then it says more about the teams below you. Competitive yes, quality no.
But can Southampton end their barren run of results here at The Riverside Stadium. To be honest I have a feeling Middlesbrough may be able to earn a draw here, with the pressure of a relegation battle lifted from them due to their fate already being consigned then they may well be able to play with the shackles of.
Southampton have only scored twice in the last five matches and they both came in the 4-2 defeat to Chelsea, that means they have failed to find the net on four occasions. That is Middlesbrough levels of goalscoring apathy. I have a feeling this is going to be a very low scoring draw. Last on Match Of The Day for me.
