Middlesbrough travel to face Bolton on Friday aiming to extend their impressive unbeaten run in the Championship. The Boro, who sit third in the table with 22 points, are in strong form ahead of the 20:00 kick-off at the Toughsheet Community Stadium.
They have not lost in their last five league games, a sequence that includes three wins and two draws. That run has kept them firmly in the promotion picture, just one point behind leaders Swansea City. Their most recent outing was a 2-2 home draw with Cardiff City last Friday, where goals from Tommy Conway and Will Lankshear secured a point.
Recent form
Michael Carrick's side have shown resilience and firepower during this period. They followed the Cardiff draw with a dramatic 3-2 away win at Stoke City, a match settled by a late Neto Borges goal. Before that, a 1-0 victory over Wolves at the Riverside and a 2-2 draw at Birmingham completed a solid block of results. Top scorer Will Lankshear has been key, netting nine times already this season.
Bolton's form has been more mixed. They earned a creditable 0-0 draw at Southampton last time out, having previously won 3-1 at Wolves. A home defeat to Stoke and a wild 4-3 win at Norwich show they are capable of both high-scoring games and defensive resilience.
Team news
Middlesbrough's lineup against Cardiff provided a strong base, with Vítek in goal behind a back four of Callum Brittain, Ayling, Phillips and Neto Borges. The midfield duo of Morris and Malanda supported an attacking trio of Amario Cozier-Duberry, McGree and Tommy Conway, with Joseph leading the line. Changes are possible as Carrick manages a busy schedule.
His defence featured Luca Stephenson, Toal, Brunt and Aji Alese. Sheehan and Simons anchored the midfield, supplying wingers Gaizka Larrazabal and Ito, with Dalby up front supported by Gale.
With both teams in decent nick, this promises to be a tight contest. Middlesbrough will be keen to maintain their momentum and keep pace at the top of the standings. Their next assignment after this trip is a home game, details of which are on the club's fixtures list. The action in Bolton gets underway at eight o'clock on Friday evening.
