Middlesbrough are seeking their first league win of 2024 at the Championship as they host Bristol City at the Riverside this afternoon.
Despite beating Chelsea here in the first leg of the Carabao Cup last month, Michael Carrick's side have so far failed to beat Coventry, Rotherham and Sunderland on home turf since the turn of the year. It adds to underwhelming home form all season which is impacting Boro's push for the play-offs.
Hosting Bristol City today, they really need the three points as they look to stay in touch with the top six, with four points currently separating them. They're only three points better off than the Robins, albeit having played a game less.
Can Boro bag an important three points? Join us for live updates throughout below.
Key Events
Full-time: Boro 1-2 Bristol City
Better second half, but damage done in another torrid first half.
GOAL: Boro 1-2, Silvera (90+1 mins)
Boro have one back. Ayling cross comes out to Azaz. He has a go and it hits off Silvera's back, in front of goal but onside, and goes in.
Five minutes were added on.
Slowly died out
Boro's momentum halted after that disallowed goal. They game has slowed to a training exercise and Boro look defeated. They've had more than enough opportunities to in this second half to get back in it. It's no new thing that Boro lack that ruthless, killer edge, however.
Some bad luck, you might say. Things just not quite dropping for them, and some very good Max O'Leary saves.
Greenwood goal disallowed for offside
Boro thought they had their goal. Quick free-kick into McGree's feet, he turns and plays in Greenwood who fires home from a tight angle. Linesman's flag up for offside. Looked really tight, but the angle of our replay here doesn't give us much clarity. Greenwood looked perplexed.
Double Boro sub
Thomas and McGree on for Engel and O'Brien. Straight swaps. McGree warmly welcomed back.
Bristol City game management
Suddenly a lot of injuries and reason to slow the game down from Bristol City. They can sense the need to slow Boro's momentum
Fans really behind Boro
Second half has been far more purposeful and played with more intent. Fans have reacted to that and are right behind them at the moment. They, as yet, haven't been able to get that goal they need to try and swing this game.
Forss goes close!
Boro really pushing hard for that early second-half goal. Forss the latest to go close.
Nice one-two with Azaz on the edge - who has looked so much better after the break after settling into the ten role. Forss gets it back on the edge, swivels and fires one across goal but it's just wide.
Greenwood close again
Lovely ball from Azaz to pick out Greenwood's run off the last shoulder. Running in behind, he finds his angle closed down well by O'Leary and the Bristol City keeper, who's having a frustratingly good game, applies the block with his chest.
Positive signs
More good play from Boro. Hackney joins in with the attack on the right and fires one low across for Azaz. A nice one-tocuh pass into Greenwood's feet for him and Greenwood sets himself before firing one with his left across goal. A strong save from O'Leary though.
Better from Boro though at the start of this second half. They could do with finding a goal in the next ten minutes or so.
Good start for Boro
Almost in immediately. Great ball in behind for Forss to run onto. He gets to the byline then goes across. It doesn't look like it will reach O'Brien, so he doesn't really expect it when it does and it more bounces off him and into O'Leary's grateful hands.
Second half under way
Boro unchanged. Mahmeti on for Bristol City, replacing Cornick.
Boro back out
No Boro changes coming at the break. O'Brien is going to stay on the left, with Hackney still back in the middle.
First half verdict
No sugar-coating it, that was bad. Two sloppy goals to concede and Glover's had to make two other big saves as well with Bristol C running in behind with ease. At the other end, it's been sloppy and turgid. One of those where the passes aren't crisp or accurate enough so even when they do find their man, it's giving them a lot to do. Improvement needed.
Half-time: Boro 0-2 Bristol CIty
Boro booed off at half-time, and it's hard to argue with that reaction.
Finn Azaz chance
Unlucky. Boro close to getting one back. Forss played in behind down the right. He cuts back and Azaz hits one across goal first time. He just couldn't get enough power behind it though. O'Leary is able to get a hand to it to palm it away.
Another huge Glover save
Barlaser wild in the middle of midfield as he swings for one and is beaten easily. Sam Bell then played in behind. One on one, Glover stands tall and makes a great block with his chest.
Boro switch
Hackney has dropped back into the midfield, Azaz has gone to ten and O'Brien is the free-roaming left winger.
Hackney chance
Boro have responded reasonably well since conceding the two quickfire goals but that's the first effort at goal to show for it. It comes quite fortuitously as well as Hackney gets it back on the rebound having tried to play a silly pass into Azaz that was never on. Swivelling away, he drives one at goal from 30 yards and it has O'Leary scrambling. Just wide of the far top corner.
Said it after Sunderland and said it before today, I'm not a fan of Hackney in that ten role. He doesn't influence matters as much and isn't as good when so often his back is to goal. He is missed in the midfield too.
The two goals
Just to offer some explanation of the two goals, given there wasn't much time to explain either.
The first was frighteningly easy. One ball straight through the middle, with a huge gap in Boro's midfield. Knight run in off the right, beating Engel, rounding Glover and tapping into an empty net.
The second, Ayling and Hackney got caught playing football in too congested an area and Hackney's loose pass gifted James possession midway in Boro's half. Boro just backed off, allowed him to drive to the box and then gave him acres of room to curl one in off the near post.
Two really sloppy goals from a Boro perspective. If you were to ask which team played 120 minutes against a Premier League side on Wednesday you wouldn't be saying Bristol City right now.
Huge boos around the Riverside
The second goal came from giving the ball away as Hackney was caught in possession. From kick-off, Barlaser then gives the ball away leading to a long-range effort trying to catch Glover off his line. It's well wide but cue huge boos from the home fans. Boro haven't really got started here.
GOAL: Bristol City 1-0, Knight (16 mins)
Boro behind. That looked frighteningly easy.
Important Glover save!
Fry tried to play an offside trap but there's no flag as he's left static with hands in the air. That leaves Cornick running in behind from their left and Fry desperately trying to chase back. Cornick gets a low shot away across goal from inside the area but Glover is down really well and gets a strong hand to it before Engel clears the danger.
Fry can't afford to stop and wait for the flag there. Play to the whistle. Never did look offside.
Boro's first opening
Great work from Ayling to intercept one down the right. He chested into Forss' path and then overlapped. Got it back before firing a cross in from the byline. Falls kindly to Hackney at the backpost who has time to take it on his chest. Just didn't fall kindly for him and he was under pressure as he got a shot off that ended up wide.
Sloppy start
Trying to play out but finding themselves pressed hard and rushed by Bristol. As a consequence, the balls out from the back haven't been finding their targets and Boro have struggled to get out of their own half early doors.
Kick-off
We are under way.
Looks like Straight swap for O'Brien and Howson in the midfield. Hackney still at 10, Azaz on the left. Looks like it's still Greenwood up top and Forss from the right.
Here come the players
Kick-off is just moments away now. We'll have updates throughout right here.
Warm ups completed
Cold, misty day on Teesside. Mist hasn't dropped low enough to impact visibility in the ground thankfully. But there is certainly a chill in the air, making those warm-ups key. The players are back in after them as we count down to kick-off. Ten minutes to go now.
Elsewhere
What feels like a big late goal for Ipswich to score in stoppage time and earn a 2-2 draw with West Brom. A big goal for Ipswich and it feels like a big one for Boro as well.
Had West Brom won that game as they so nearly did, they've had been ten points ahead of Boro before today's game. Bear in mind, Ipswich in fourth, even with the defeat, would have been 18 points ahead of Boro, it does feel like Boro are just playing for the last two play-off places.
As a result of that late goal, the gap to West Brom is just eight points and Boro can cut that to five with a win here.
