Thursday, March 30, 2006
Basle 2 Boro 0
What happens to Boro when we decide we are very confident and surely the best team? We lose, that's what. It happens all the time! I can understand the excitement that we were only four games away from a Uefa cup final, but we have to win first. Basle are there in the last eight on merit, and whilst saying we underestimated them may be a bit harsh, I have to say that tactically we were a little off. OK so we didn't do too much wrong and were victims to an unlucky spell when the conditions acted against us. But no excuses.Delgado and Degan terrorised us all night, and in the first half especially always looked like getting something from their forward moves, as they appeared to relish the slippery pitch that Boro players were falling all over on. Their control and movement seemed generally better, although the home advantage was very evident. We had our chances, mostly squandered, but there was just a sense of it not being our night when just as thoughts of getting in at half time crept in we found ourselves victim to a one, two nightmare. Their first was more than fortunate, as captain for the night Chris Riggott ducked out of the way of a long range effort that dipped, curled, slid off the surface and caught Mark Schwarzer with his boots stuck in the mud and unable to leap in time. Before we had barely a chance to say "I don't believe that" it was two, as Degan zoomed down the right, taking advantage of Franck Quedrue's lethargy before sending the big Aussie the wrong way.
Leaving us torn between the absolute necessity of not conceding a third and the importance of an away goal in the second half. Riggot and then Ehiougu hit the woodwork, Jimmy came close, and Mad Dog cracked his skull open for the cause, but it was a Swiss night and we come back to Teesside with the proverbial mountain to climb. It is more a Ben Nevis than an Everest, it has to be said - we will be favourites to win on the night at the Riverside, there are certainly goals to be had against them, but whether we can score two or more without reply is another thing. Surely the only thing to do is fly at them gung-ho from the kickoff and hope for a hatful. It could be the end of a sweet adventure, but not quite yet...
My MOTM: Riggott - unlucky not to score, critical stop on the line to prevent them getting a third and obviously upset in interview afterwards (which is the attitude we need).
Sunday, March 26, 2006
Boro 4 Bolton 3
We've played a lot of games recently, but not too many home league games, so it was nice to play host to Bolton - a team we have a good record against in recent times. They had European aspirations, but we had a good run of form to boast - it was 50/50 who would come out on top. With the worst possible of starts, conceding in the first 3 minutes, it looked very quickly like their day. But with in form strikers like Jimmy Floyd and Mark Viduka no team is safe! A penalty from the Dutchman that wriggled under the body of their keeper brought a sigh of relief to the lips of player and fans alike. It was soon added to by another from the Mark Viduka classics collection to give us a deserved half time lead.Jimmy made it three one with a typical opportunist's goal early in the second half and from then on we went down a gear and into cruise mode. Bad idea. Bolton came back with trademark grit and determination, exploiting the less than committed defending that began to creep into our game as we clockwatched, hoping for the game to end with us still in front. We got a big wake-up call at 3-3 and Bolton can consider themselves unlucky not to have taken at least a point from the game. But it was academy graduate Stuart Parnaby that sealed it for the Boro with only seconds to go - a perfect cross from substitute Yakubu tapped in by him before George Boateng, following up behind, had a chance for the glory.
To score four goals against a good team is wonderful, but to concede 3 again, with at least 2 of them completely unnecessary, is a typical reflection of our season. We continue to remain vulnerable at the back, opposing teams know that, and pretty soon we will surely be in for another Arsenal style kicking if we don't shore it up. Regardless of that though we have reached the dizzy heights of 14th again, leapfrogging Villa and Fulham - two teams we are most definitely better than and deserve to stay above from here on in. Newcastle and Man City are next in the firing line - the latter of which we face next weekend. We need to beat them 6-0 to go ahead of them on goal difference (not going to happen), but we have a game in hand on those two teams and should be above them soon enough with a good result on Sunday.
My MOTM: Mark Viduka - at the top of his game, bringing out the tricks and holding up play to great effect.
Thursday, March 23, 2006
Charlton 0 Boro 0
Bad luck as much as bad play has given Charlton two wins over us this season, and with a semi final at stake you could be sure they would be hungry for a third. But Boro are beginning to believe (at last) that they can beat anyone on their day and came to the Valley with a lot of bravado. Charlton themselves had only had one win in seven before this (against the Boro) so weren't exactly settling the world alight in their traditional end of season slump - leaving the door wide open for us to go through.In reality it was a very even affair, with both teams scrambling in midfield for moderately skilful scraps. If anything, Charlton showed more spirit, especially in the first half, but chances for both teams were rare. Yakubu had a very early open header go way off target, and Schwarzer turned away a limp close range effort to leave things at stalemate. The second half was much the same and I heard myself screaming for two substitutions: Morisson for Medieta and in form Viduka for Hasselbaink. My first wish was granted not before time, as the Spaniard made one wayward pass too many. But Viduka came on for Yakubu (probably being wrapped in cotton wool for the Uefa cup), leaving the two most experienced strikers to try and steal something late on. Viduka's influence was immediate, his expert hold-up play leading to some of our best chances, including a few for himself. But it was Morisson who had the most glaring chances go astray in the last fifteen minutes - on the night it was just destined to go to extra time.
With 3 of the four ties being decided in 90 minutes it was inevitable that the team that needed a reply least got one. The tie will be held up until 12th April due to the congested fixture list and offers a terrific incentive to the eventual winner in a relatively soft match-up with West Ham, as Chelsea and Liverpool contest the main event - at least in the media's eyes! Myself, I couldn't be happier to be away from the limelight. With a home tie for a place in the semis and a fifty fifty game on neutral territory to come I will be disappointed not to reach the final. And if we do, even a defeat would mean a Uefa cup spot for next season! There is a lot at stake!
My MOTM: Ugo Egiogu - bloodied for the cause and one of the best defensive performances in months from him, beating Schwarzer to the prize by a bump on the head.
Saturday, March 18, 2006
Blackburn 3 Boro 2
It could have been so much better in the league this season. A point never better demonstrated than in our last two away games at Charlton and today at Blackburn Rovers - two games that we should have won, but in the end didn't even get a draw out of. Not 6 points, not 2 points for trying, nil points - and that's our season!Blackburn have gone on a great run since beating us twice at the turn of the year and must have felt good about facing us again, despite our terrific cup runs. Craig Bellemy was touted pre-match as their biggest threat and so it proved, with 2 top notch goals sandwiched either side of a soft free kick from Pederson. Defensively, then, we have gone back to the bad old days of conceding too many in unnecessary circumstances. When you add to it all that their winner came when down to ten men, you just want the season to end now so we can regroup, sign some new names to strengthen the backline and start again from scratch. Going forward has not really been a problem, however, and today was no different with it being Viduka's turn to shine: three awesome goals in three consecutive games for the Aussie, who is hitting form at a key time for us. Rochemback also doubled his total with a fine effort to draw the game level with more than twenty minutes to go, but it was not to be.
It is worrying not to be able to tie up a game against ten men, and a timely reminder that with this squad any kind of complacency can lead to suicide. The top ten now seems a very long way off. But at least the relegation zone is as equally unlikely with a good ten point cushion and the bottom four all looking dreadful at the moment. To the cups our focus goes then, and first up is a quick rematch at the Valley against Charlton. There are some big teams left in the hat, but I don't count Charlton as one of them, to be honest - they are very beatable and with the right team selection and attitude I fancy us to win and win well to make it to the semis. Big game. Very exciting to be in the shake-up at the business end.
My MOTM: James Morrison, back with avengeance, picking up where he left off by being involved in everything we did right.
Thursday, March 16, 2006
Roma 2 Boro 1 (2-2 agg - Boro win on away goals)
The most glorious night for Boro since the Carling cup final in Cardiff was a night that will live very long in the memory. There was more than a little hope, going into Rome with a slender advantage, knowing that their top strikers were all out injured and that an away goal would leave them needing three. We were also well aware that overly defensive tactics would not work. From the kick-off it was a high octane game, with some very nervy end to end stuff, as the Italians looked to quickly put the game in their hands. Southgate, Riggott, Schwarzer and most of the midfield did a terrific job containing them for the first half hour, however, and when Jimmy popped up on the counter with a glancing header there can't have been a Boro fan not screaming in delight and thinking that it was all but over.The bad news was that their main danger man, Mancini, was having a real going night and came up with a skillful equaliser just before the half. Even so, two more for them looked unlikely on the balance of play, especially when the lads held firm during some big opening gambits in the early minutes of the second half. Everything changed on 64 minutes, though, as a contentious penalty went the way of the favourites, a chance not wasted by Mancini to bring Roma within one of going through with a full 25 minutes to play. By now I was pretty drunk so the nerves weren't as bad as you might imagine - it just felt like our night, and as our big Aussie keeper began to repel every effort with skill and confidence I knew it was in the bag. Still, there was no little relief at the final whistle, and a huge amount of pride. Anyone can say what they like about Boro this season now - we are the team that knocked out Roma to reach the quarter finals of the Uefa cup.
So, our furthest foray into Europe and an unbelievable chance to go on to the final with the good news from the draw being a favourable tie against Basel of Switzerland, with the winner going on to face one of the Bucharest sides in the semi - and we have to be favourites for all those games! Hats off to the team on the night and the entire squad for putting us in this position - there have been some world class performances out there on the way and we deserve it 100%. Come On Boro.
My MOTM: Vital goal from Jimmy, but Schwarzer gets the vote for courage under fire to see us through safely.
Sunday, March 12, 2006
Charlton 2 Boro 1
An opportunity wasted! With on e eye on the all important return leg in Rome on Wednesday, Steve McClaren made 9 changes to the team that beat them 1-0 at the Riverside. Giving starts to Mark Viduka, Massimo Maccarone, Ray Parlour and the long missed Tony McMahon amongst others. It still didn't look a bad side on paper, an encouraging note that the squad is almost back at full strength. Boro more or less dominated the first half, with an impressive shot count and an offensive line that did everything but put the ball in the net. Shots from Parlour, Johnson and Viduka all came close but no cigar.The same could be said of the second half, with Charlton looking fairly limp going forward. However, they got the first goal against the run of play via the ever dangerous Darren Bent. A sense of injustice was assuaged a few minutes later when another cracker from Viduka leveled things up. Ten minutes to go and an away draw looked like a reasonable if not wholly satisfactory result. But up popped Bent again to steal a cruel winner for the London side, rubbing in a day of part injustice part tactical misjudgment - the game and all three points were ours for the taking but the killer instinct was missing somewhat. Even a late show for Yakubu couldn't bring any joy, with Adam Johnson (our man of the match) coming closest late on by forcing another first class save from Thomas Mhyre (their man of the match).
So our game in hand on the teams immediately above us comes to nought. We will have to wait a bit longer to leapfrog Villa, Charlton and then Newcastle, but you still feel than in the run in we will be the strongest of those four. It is wise, to a degree, to have given so much thought to Roma in midweek, as the Uefa Cup represents an excellent chance of getting straight back in the competition for the third year running - by winning the thing! With rested players and the Italian side losing their last game in serie A we must stand a great chance of going one step closer to that goal.
My MOTM: Adam Johnson, proving that even if fit Stewart Downing is not a shoe-in for a first team place.
Thursday, March 09, 2006
Boro 1 Roma 0
It is highly debatable whether this was Boro's biggest game ever, or even of the Riverside era, but it was one of the most glamourous and most talked about. On a typical Teesside evening, with rain pouring down and a chill wind to worry the Italians, conditions could not have been more favourable for the home team. The pitch was almost a bog in midfield, but little attempt had been made to drain it, with the Roma boss moaning on about it not being right for a skilful game of football, but would turn the 90 minutes into a more physical battle.And so it was. Roma showing intermittently some lovely skill on and off the ball, but with Boro controlling the majority of the play from the back to the midfield. Everyone was up for this (and why not!) and it was a much more positive attitude than has sometimes been seen this season. Jimmy Floyd and the Yak shared honours up front, and it was through Jimmy's canny run and tumble that Yakubu got the chance to slot home a cool penalty past their young reserve keeper for the only goal of the night. Proving once again that on the big occasions we are a match for anyone.
I would be worried about the return leg, however, which is certain to be a completely different affair as they try to revert to a more flowing continental style and control the home advantage just as we did. A shame then that Mendieta couldn't widen the advantage from a through ball by sub Mark Viduka - a one on one with the keeper which he took way to long to hit. It is not impossible, though, that we could do to them what Benfica did to Liverpool earlier in the week: score an away goal early and leave them needing 3 to take the tie. A clean sheet tonight was a big bonus, and even though they may still be slight favourites back at the Olympic stadium, the nerves must surely be all theirs for the opening minutes and we need to capitalise on that.
last 8 of Uefa? Just maybe...
My MOTM: Lee Catermole - coming of age in leaps and bounds, with superb composure, grit and a nice touch tonight.
Monday, March 06, 2006
Boro 1 Birmingham 0
Not the most inspiring games of all time, that is true, but it is the kind of home win that you grind out when not at your best - a feat we couldn't buy for love nor money a few months ago. What was good was Mark Viduka's winner: the Aussie has had to sit on the bench through Jimmy Floyd's purple patch and, fair play to him, he proved his point in the best possible way and looked rightly chuffed with himself. The skill demonstrated to coolly turn the defense inside out, sell the keeper one and then slot in from a tight angle is not to be sniffed at - it is right up there with the best Boro goals of the season make no doubt about it.There was much made of this being another big six pointer and Birmingham were expected to have the bit between their teeth from the start. Their desire was clear for all to see, but their finishing in the final third was poor, reflecting their league position. Boro did ride their luck at the back at times and would have conceded a fair few against a more confident team, but Schwarzer was once again on song and the boys in front of him did just enough to keep the blues at bay. Mendieta, Boateng, Doriva and Cattermole all did their bit in midfield to keep it competitive, and at the end of the day it is 3 more points, six wins from seven in all competitions and almost certain safety in the premiership.
34 points and 15th position, leapfrogging Fulham. As Gareth Southgate said in the post match interview, it is time to look up the table now - only 6 points to the top 10 (surely our next target) and a game in hand on most of the teams above us. The problem now could be fixture congestion, although we have been pretty used to that this season. Seven games in 23 days is a lot and it is not an impossibility we will come back to earth with a crash against Roma, making an away day at the Valley next Sunday seem a daunting task. As it stands though we are in great heart and long may it continue. Come on Boro!
My MOTM: Mark Viduka for a great mini comeback and a terrific goal.
