Middlesbrough 4 Norwich 0
Bamford 5 Leadbitter 33 (Pen), 69
Wildschut 85
Middlesbrough laid down the gauntlet to the rest of the
Championship with an eye-opening 4-0 victory over promotion rivals Norwich, a
result which moves Aitor Karanka’s side up to second in the league and sets up
a top of the table clash with 1st place Bournemouth on Saturday.
 |
| Patrick Bamford celebrates the opening goal |
After Patrick Bamford got the ball rolling with a close
range header, Boro captain Grant Leadbitter notched his league goal tally up to
eight with two contrasting goals, his first a calm finish from the penalty spot
his second a swooping header over Norwich keeper John Ruddy. Substitute Yanic
Wildschut added a fourth to round off an emphatic win
With only 16 games gone it’s still far too early to start
thinking about any promotion celebrations; however this was clear evidence that
Karanka’s side can do more than just go toe to toe with one of the early season
favourites, it was evidence they have the ability to take them apart.
Norwich are no pushovers and this time last year were
holding their own in the Premier league, nevertheless Boro had drained the
energy from their opponents by half time and in the second half, hung them out
to dry for all of the Championship to see.
The Canaries could point to the awarding of harsh looking
penalty when Russell Martin collided with George Friend inside the visitors box
before Leadbitter made it 2-0. Manager Neil Adams gave no excuses though saying
“We got what we deserved. It was not good enough at all” He was right and after
a bright start the Norwich heads soon dropped after half time.
Contrastingly Karakna was understandingly upbeat but wary of
any premature celebrations "We have very good players and a very good
squad. We are in a very good way but these kind of games cannot confuse us into
thinking everything is done” Said the Boro manager after the match “I am very
happy and very pleased but we want to keep our feet on the ground. We would
like to be in this position in May."
The Boro team showed three changes from the side that
started in the 3-0 victory over Rotherham on Saturday. Ryan Fredericks returned
at right back in place of Emilo Nsue who dropped to the bench, he was joined by
Wildschut and Adam Reach with Albert Adomah returning on the right and Lee
Tomlin in behind the striker. That meant Bamford moved out to the left with
Kike upfront.
Norwich were unchanged from the side which won 2-1 at home
to Bolton last time out, Cameron Jerome scored twice in that game and remained
the lone frontman. Ex-Boro midfielder Gary O’Neil also started in the centre of
midfield.
Nevertheless the hosts were in front inside five minutes,
following an energetic start. Kike released Adomah down the left channel, from
there the Ghanaian international picked out Bamford in the Norwich box, who
managed to steer his low header beyond Ruddy.
The goal came just after Boro right back Ryan Fredericks had
fired over the bar from the edge of the area, however in the following
exchanges it was Norwich who created the better openings
Nathan Redmond was particularly lively on the visitors left,
with 9 minutes gone he cut inside to shoot but Daniel Ayala was on hand to
block to effort. The pressure didn’t stop there, and Norwich continued to press
high up the pitch, pinning Boro back.
O’Neil came closest to levelling the scoring on 12 minutes
when he played a neat give and go on the edge of the Boro box, the resulting
shot forced Boro keeper Dimi Konstantopulos to make a low save. Jerome and Kyle
Lafferty also had chances but were wasteful and off target.
Boro battled on, and when the chance to launch a counter
attack arose they took it. Kike was again involved, this time finding Friend on
the overlap in the visitor’s box; he appeared to be going nowhere when he
tangled with Martin but referee Nigel Miller pointed to the spot and Leadbitter
coolly converted.
Two could have become three before half time with Boro now
on top. The best of the chances fell to Kike whose close range shot was
blocked; nevertheless the home fans were more than grateful for a 2-0 advantage
at half time.
A tactical chance at the break saw Adams bring on Gary
Hooper for Alex Tettey switching to a 4-4-2. It wasn’t long before Karanka
responded three minutes after the restart with the introduction of Reach who
replaced Adomah.
The next goal was significant, but after the interval it
appeared the canaries’ energy had deserted them. Jerome fired wide again for
the visitors, at the other end Ayala headed Reach’s cross over the bar.
It was at that point Boro stepped up proceedings,
Leadbitter’s long range effort brushed the side netting before a cleared Boro
corner fell to Fredericks on the edge of the box, the full back’s low effort required
Ruddy to turn the shot wide.
On 69 minutes Boro made the decisive move. Karanka had just
brought on Wildschut in place of Kike and Norwich were still readjusting. Then
came the moment of real quality for Boro’s third, a delicate ball from Tomlin
over the Norwich defence picked out Leadbitter ,who had broken from midfield,
the Boro skipper’s looping header caught Ruddy in no-man’s land and put a seal
on the result.
The icing on the cake would have been a first Boro goal for
Jelle Vossen who replaced Bamford with 15 minutes to go. Boro’s fourth came ten
minutes later when Ruddy dropped Leadbitter’s corner and Wildschut poked the
ball home.
Player Ratings
Dimi Konstantopulos
8- Not overly tested but made key saves when he had to and was
comfortable when coming for crosses
George Friend 8-
Stayed disciplined defensively and added option going forward
Ben Gibson 7-
Overall solid, gave a few long balls away in the first half
Daniel Ayala 7.5-
Boro’s first choice centre half barely put a foot wrong
Ryan Fredericks 7.5-
His consistent performances are becoming expected another strong display
Adam Clayton 7.5-
Looked to be struggling in the first half but became Boro’s unsung hero working
hard in midfield
Grant Leadbitter 9- Fought
for control in midfield and never let it go, two goals were a fitting
reward
Albert Adomah 6.5-
Played major role in the first goal, subbed after half time
Patrick Bamford 8-
Added third league goal of the season, movement was a problem for Norwich
Lee Tomlin 7.5- possessed
moments of magic in the final third which helped unlock the Norwich backline
Kike 7- Battled well
against the Norwich centre backs but missed a few opportunities
Subs
Adam Reach 7-
disciplined performance after coming on after half time
Yanic Wildchut 7-
Scored second goal in as many games and added pace on the wing
Jelle Vossen - Came on with 15 minutes to go, not enough
time to give a fair rating
No comments:
Post a Comment