The verdict as Middlesbrough lost 3-1 to Coventry City at the CBS Arena
Haji Wright of Coventry City scores a goal and celebrates 3-0(Image: Ryan Browne/Shutterstock)
Middlesbrough’s Coventry City curse continued as they lost a seventh straight game against the Sky Blues, who leapfrogged Boro back to the top of the Championship.
A 3-1 victory for the home side after a Haji Wright hat-trick, it felt largely of Boro’s own doing – as twice they failed to capitalise on potential momentum swings, conceding both second half goals while on top.
A poor first half saw them trailing deservedly, but they were on top when they gifted Wright his second ten minutes after the restart. Getting back into it through Riley McGree’s goal, they then conceded a penalty just two minutes later, on a night where they couldn’t get a grip of the game, and ultimately surrendered top spot.
Naming an unchanged side after last Monday evening’s victory at Sheffield United, Boro needed a similar kind of away performance. They’d done so well to manage the early atmosphere at Bramall Lane before taking control.
With Coventry out of form, a similar outcome this time could have quickly created an anxiety around the CBS Arena, but it was the exact opposite. They offered the home side and their fans encouragement with their own sloppiness in possession.
There were only two minutes on the clock when Wright headed against the post, and it didn’t get much better from there for Boro.
Coventry had done their homework and packed out the middle of the park to cut off the passing channels that Kim Hellberg’s side usually like to utilise. With one-time Boro transfer target physically dominant in the middle of the park, Boro struggled to advance up the pitch or keep the ball.
Coventry just looked half a yard shaper and made that count on 21 minutes when they grabbed the lead. With Tommy Conway off the pitch after receiving treatment, the lively Tatsuhiro Sakamoto turned away from pressure before playing Jack Rudoni to the byline. He cut it back and Wright got in ahead of Ayling and finished from close range.
Any hope the goal would spark Boro into life were short-lived. They just could not get a grip of the game whatsoever. It said everything about their first half that their only meaningful chance of the first half came on 40 minutes and out of nothing, as Morgan Whittaker headed Matt Targett’s cross off a defender’s back and behind for a corner.
At the other end, Coventry went close to adding a second before the interval when Boro once again surrendered possession trying to play forward quickly. Ephron Mason-Clark reacted quickest to the loose ball and got away from Ayling but fired wide of the far post.
Seeking something different in the second half, Boro almost enjoyed the perfect start. Just 31 seconds after the restart, Whittaker arrived at the right time to get on the end of Riley McGree’s cross. He just couldn’t keep it under the bar.
It was a positive start to the second half for Boro, and the result was a nervous energy growing around the CBS Arena. Boro were looking better and pushing for an equaliser.
That was until Boro gifted them the simplest of cushions. Just one long punt from Carl Rushworth got Wright in behind as he ran too easily off Ayling before firing home. Ayling wanted Brynn to come and get it, but it looked like one the defender should have been dealing with.
Hellberg was quick to make the changes, bringing on Jeremy Sarmiento and David Strelec soon after. They made an impact, in particular the January signing, who looked lively and was unlucky when he crashed one off the post.
Moments later he was involved again as Boro did pull one back with 22 minutes still to play. Callum Brittain’s low cross was met by the impact sub. Though his shot was blocked, it fell kindly for McGree to crash it home.
Again, it looked like an opportunity for Boro to capitalise on nervous energy around the ground. Again, they kicked themselves in the foot, just moments after their goal.
Matt Targett got caught the wrong side of his man and, in busting a gut to back in, he then wasn’t set well as the cross came in and his outstretched arm clearly blocked it leading to an easy penalty decision. Wright beat Brynn for pace to complete his hat-trick and restore the two-goal cushion.
As much as they tried, Boro had little else to give. They’d squandered two excellent chances to make amends for a poor first half and failed to take them. Very much like the reverse fixture at the Riverside, Coventry ruthlessly punished them, albeit with a feeling that in the second half their victory came a bit gift-wrapped from a Boro perspective.
You can never say with any true clarity what might have happened. But conceding such a soft second goal when on top, and then conceding the penalty moments after scoring, felt like two massively missed opportunities.
A tenth meeting between the two teams without a Boro win, Hellberg’s side saw their six-match winning run come to an end. Coventry moved a point clear at the top, with Boro now needing to quickly move and focus on their rebound on Saturday when they host Oxford United.
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