Middlesbrough go in search of a third straight league win as Bristol City visit the Riverside

Middlesbrough claimed a surprise 2-0 away win against play-off rivals Reading at the weekend as the Championship threw up one of the most unpredictable weekends of the season.

Neil Warnock will be grateful that a run of four defeats and a draw from four league games coincided with the capitulation of sixth-placed Bournemouth because back-to-back league wins have left the Teessiders in eighth place, three points behind the Dorset club heading into a winnable midweek fixture against Bristol City.

The play-off race has looked a foregone conclusion for large spells of this season, but the poor recent form of Reading and Bournemouth, combined with Boro’s revival and that of their fellow top-six hopefuls Cardiff, Barnsley, Stoke and even Millwall, has set up a mouth-watering finale.

Middlesbrough are one of the favourites to capitalise on this opportunity and will feel confident that they can extend their winning streak to three league games when they welcome a struggling Bristol City side to the Riverside on Tuesday evening. Warnock’s men followed up a 2-1 win against Huddersfield with a convincing away victory against Reading on Saturday afternoon and will be full of confidence in midweek.

Bristol City’s fortunes couldn’t be more conflicting. The Robins looked like genuine playoff contenders after they kicked off the season with four consecutive victories, but Dean Holden’s fortunes unravelled in 2021 and he was duly dismissed following last week’s 2-0 defeat to Reading. The visitors travel to Teesside hoping to end a staggering run of six straight league defeats.

Paul Simpson takes charge of his second game as interim manager on Tuesday night after the Robins lost 1-0 at home to Barnsley on Saturday. The former England under-20s boss won’t take much confidence from his side’s recent away form either. The visitors have lost seven consecutive away league games, with their last points on the road coming against QPR on the 1st of December, 2020.

This disastrous run of form has left Bristol City down in 15th place, ten points adrift in the playoff race and ten points clear of the relegation. Ten points may seem like a comfortable buffer as things stand, but if soon-to-be manager Nigel Pearson can’t arrest this slide, City may find themselves wrapped up in a relegation battle.

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One change is expected from Middlesbrough manager Neil Warnock, with creative midfielder George Saville set for a return after a couple of games on the bench. Warnock has regularly mixed up his attacking lineup on a game-to-game basis this season, so don’t be shocked to see one of Britt Assombalonga or Chuba Akpom return to partner Ashley Fletcher.

In terms of injuries, the hosts will be without midfield duo Marcus Browne and Marcus Tavernier on Tuesday night. The latter is struggling with a muscle injury, but could be back involved before the end of February.

More changes are on the cards for the visitors. Paul Simpson’s side have failed to score in their last five games in all competitions, so expect Championship goal-getting stalwart, Nahki Wells, to return to the fray up top. Midfield duo Adam Nagy and Tyreeq Bakinson found starts hard to come by during the latter stages of Dean Holden’s tenure but could return to the starting XI in midweek.

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