Hello Peeps and Boro fans,

I'm afraid todays post has no frilly bits or nice action photos. Pure rant material so let's get going.

The trip to West Brom on Saturday was a total disaster for us. How did we get beat 3-0 by a team of their quality?

It actually takes some doing to get thrashed by a poor side, but that surely means we are a poor side ourselves. Looking back on the season so far, we have gone to places like Anfield and Villa Park and outplayed these teams. Ok, so the result at Liverpool was not the right result, but I'm talking about the performance.

Why have we been playing so badly of late? Are the players not motivated enough? Did the players over perform at the beginning of the season? Or, is our manager not good enough to 'manage' a talented set of players?

These questions will need to be asked and answered by the Middlesbrough board this week and decisions will have to be made on how we are to move forward because at the moment we are moving backwards at high speed.

I was thinking long and hard yesterday about who would be feeling the most pressure at Middlesbrough? Southgate, Gibson or the players?

It's a tough one because they are all paid very high amounts of money to do their jobs. Of course, Steve Gibson pays himself so we can exclude him, but he will still be feeling the pressure regarding the town's backing and support. If Gibson does not make the right decision in the next couple of weeks, the fans could turn on our chairman meaning Boro's number one fan could begin to feel the pressure.

The players and the management should be feeling the pressure as they are the ones that can influence a result the most on a Saturday afternoon.

Team selection

Gareth Southgate has a lot to answer for in my opinion. He is the manager of Middlesbrough FC. This means he has to manage a set of very talented individuals to play as a team on a Saturday afternoon. The Boro boss should be worried sick about his job at this present time, but also concentrating on where he needs to improve the team's performance.

It all starts with the team selection. Who Southgate selects on a Saturday afternoon will untimely determine the outcome of the game. Let me give you an example of how Southgate is selecting the team at the moment.

I'll take the West Brom game. Southgate had injuries to Pogatetz, Arca and Aliadiere so he needed to replace them. He did so by selecting Taylor, O'Neil and Shawky.

The problem is the formation and the positions players are playing in. Why is Tuncay playing on the left of midfield? Why is Downing playing behind Alves and why did Southgate opt for just one man up front?

There are a lot of questions in today's post, but I'm sure you're all with me on this one. The game of football is simple if you make the right decisions. Southgate is making it so hard for himself by swapping the team around.

The team should have been this one and a lot of Boro fans, that I have spoken to recently, would agree.

                                                             Turnbull

                              Bates             Wheater            Huth          Taylor

                             Johnson           O'Neil           Digard           Downing 

                                                      Mido         Alves

It's not hard to notice that Tuncay has been quiet for the last six games so he needs a rest for a couple of games so, Mido should have started against West Brom to partner Afonso up front. Southgate's decision to play Tuncay on the left was because he didn't want to drop the Turkish striker. That might be because he doesn't want to cause any rifts between the players during the transfer window which is a lack of man managment skills on Southgate's behalf. If he wants to be successful he needs to be strong and bold with decisions.

Back to the team selection from Saturday's game. O'Neil is not a wide man and to expect him to run all day out wide after recovering from an illness was another remarkable decision by Southgate. Even if he was fit enough he should have been put in the middle of the park to partner Digard. Shawky is notgood enough, simple.

For me, on recent performances, Bates is a better defender than McMahon. Bates played very well against United at Old Trafford last month and should have cemented that right back position ever since. Another slip up that Southgate made on Saturday was playing Riggott instead of Huth. The German is fully fit now so he should be playing. I would put Huth ahead of Riggott in the pecking order any day of the week.

The Downing in the 'whole' position needs to be forgotten about quickly. Downing is a left winger/midfielder and not an attacking midfielder. Ok, so he linked up well with Alves last Saturday against Sunderland, but that is one game. The question you have to ask is, would Capello pick Downing to play in that position for England? No.

The most disappointing decision that Southgate keeps making is leaving Adam Johnson on the bench. If he was managed by a good manager the young winger would be playing week in week out and improving in every game. He is wasted on the bench.

So, there you have it, rant over. I look at possible starting line-ups every other day thinking, what would be the best line up?! It is so simple when you look at players and where their best positions are and play them there. It seems that Southgate gets influenced by too many people on his team selection. Gareth has been in football for nearly three seasons now, surely he must have the knowledge to select a side from a talented squad of players?

If not, then I'm afraid he needs to give someone else a go at it.

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Afternoon Peeps and Boro fans,

The sun is shining and the weather is sweet yeah, makes you wanna move your dancing feet now.

Sorry about that, just been listening to some Bob Marley this morning to get me in the mood for our trip to London tomorrow.

Fulham is an odd fixture in our season. It is one of those games that is very unpredictable. I'm not one for being bold with predictions, but this one could really be a win, loss or a draw.

So what are the factors that will determine the result tomorrow? The biggest factor tomorrow, by far, will be how Mark "Skippy" Schwarzer performs. Our old ball stopper will probably have the game of his life against us, it always seems to happen when a former player lines up against us.

Another factor that will determine the outcome of the game will be how we cope in front of goal. I know this is an obvious one, but if Southgate plays the same team that played Arsenal I think we will have to take every chance we get.

Defending will be Gareth's main objective tomorrow and then he will rely on his forward thinkers to get the result in the final third of the pitch. Our big players tomorrow will be Tuncay, Downing and Aliadiere. These three will hold the key to opening the Fulham defence.

Team news for the Cottage trip

Didier Digard is a major doubt ahead of the game. The Frenchman has a thigh injury. This is a big blow for us considering how well he has been playing recently.

David Wheater is back in the squad following his suspension. Andrew Taylor is back from a knee injury, which will give Gareth Southgate a much needed headache ahead of the game. 

Mighty Mido is back in the squad after going AWOL for a couple of weeks. Alves might get the chance to shine once again if GS reverts back to a 4-4-2 formation.

Prediction

Fulham 1 Boro 2 - Fun packed match with plenty to talk about after. Ross will have an awesome game in goal. Downing and Tuncay will be on the score sheet and Mido will get a good reception when he comes on as sub late on.

Let me know what you guys think. Win, loss or a draw?

Enjoy the game girls and boys. 

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Afternoon Peeps and Boro fans,

Sorry about the lack of posting yesterday.. festivity commitments! Back to the world of Middlesbrough FC today. Ooh my head hurts.

I was thinking about the games we have over the Christmas period and thought - who will be our 'key players' in those games.

We play Fulham away on Saturday and then play Everton at home on boxing day. The Manchester United game is on the following Monday evening so there are three very tough games, but all winnable.

I have come up with five main players to look out for over those three games. If all five players play well in the games I'm sure we will come away from the games with at least five points. My heart is saying seven points, but my head says five.

Our Merry Men At Christmas

1. Ross Turnbull - The lad has performed heroics so far this season and the festive period will be his biggest challenge so far in his first season as Boro's number one. A good solid goalkeeper will keep us in the hunt for points over Christmas.

2. David Wheater - Our Redcar born defender is having another superb season in a Boro shirt. With injuries to the defence, Wheater will be asked to play in either a right back or a central defence role over the next three games. He will be a key player for us if we are to keep clean sheets in December.

3. Didier Digard - He is playing very well at the moment and I think there is much more to come from our French midfielder. Important battles lie ahead for him in the next three games, but I think he will relish the challenge. By the way, he was my man of the match against Arsenal last Saturday. An awesome display in the middle.

4. Stewart Downing - DJ Downing is having an incosistent season so far. I'm backing him to shine over the festive period. His penetrating crosses and passes will be key for us against Everton at home and United away. My bet is he will notch a couple over Christmas.

5. Afonso Alves - Is he the unluckiest striker in the Premier league or is he just plain rubbish. I believe he is an awesome striker who is lacking the luck at the minute. Southgate will play him over Christmas and I think he will get back on the scoring trail.

I've missed a couple of players which you guys will probably be thinking are going to be winners over the next few game. Your right, I've left out the likes of Aliadiere, Tuncay and Adam Johnso purely because I think they will continue their good form.

Let's hope the team can start with a win at Fulham on Saturday.

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Afternoon Peeps and Boro fans,

It seems that Gareth Southgate loves playing Arsenal. As a fan, I for one, used to hate playing Arsenal. The games against the North London side a few years back were 'goal fests'. Not for Boro though, for Arsenal. 6-1's and 7-0 come to mind.

All change now since Gareth has taken over. Our manager enjoys tackling one of the big boys in the league and has had recent success. Southgate is still unbeaten as manager of Middlesbrough against Arsene Wenger's team.

The latest 1-1 draw shows us how far we have come as a team since the days when we feared Arsenal and were subject to a humiliating scoreline. Henry has gone, Vieria has gone and Aliadiere has gone to Boro! Ali scored his second goal in three appearances against his former club on Saturday and on both occasions Boro have come away with a point.

Southgate will take a lot of confidence from the Arsenal match. His defensive decisions really paid off for him and his decision to drop Alves also paid dividends.

I would like to see the team take their efforts from Saturdays game into the away game against Fulham, but I'm sure a different team will turn up. You never know with Boro after a few disappointing results.

As a team we went from enjoying a good run to stop starting at the moment. The Bolton display was the most disappointing of the season and the Hull City result was probably the hardest to take considering the referee decisions.

We need to kick on now and get a few wins. Too many draws recently for my liking.

A win on the road against Fulham on Saturday will put us in a good position to push up the league and get a good run going. After Fulham we have Everton at home, which is a very good chance to get all three points. We play United at the end of the month, which could be a good advert for us in the January transfer window if we put in a good show.

What do the fans think of the recent rumours?

Adam Johnson has been linked with Real Madrid. We know how good he is, but do we believe that the Spanish giants want him?

As January 1st closes in, the Downing saga seems to be hotting up. Southgate has apparently stated that he wants cash plus a player if Spurs are serious about getting our left winger.

O'Hara and Dos Santos have been mentioned, but this is pure paper talk at the moment. Could be an interesting January for us.

Southgate might have some money to spend!

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Good afternoon Peeps and Boro fans,

Only a couple of days until Middlesbrough battle Arsenal at the Riverside. The lunch time kick off looks very mouth-watering for a Boro fan. We have done very well against the north London team in the last four league meetings.

Boro took four points off Arsenal last season and will be looking to improve on that points total starting with another win against the top four side.

Can we beat Arsenal?

Of course we can, especially now because Arsene Wneger's side are going through a rough patch, which will give Gareth Southgate even more confidence going into the game.

The only problem Southgate faces before the game is his 'defensive pickings'. With David Wheater suspended after last weekends red card against Hull our manager will be sweating on the fitness of Robert Huth. If the German fails to make the game, then Seb Hines will be in contention to make a rare start.

I think the likes of Tuncay, Alves, Aliadiere and Downing will cause the Arsenal defence all sorts of problems on Saturday. If Tuncay has been reading the latest media reports, then he will be full of confidence knowing that a top team like Chelsea are after him. It can only be a good thing for our Turkish star.

Alves still has a lot to prove to the Boro players and I expect him to thrive against Arsenal. If Tuncay and Alves are on form, then I can see us winning on Saturday. Big if though.

I'll bring you the latest match preview tomorrow. Let's hope Huth is still in contention for a start. Fingers crossed.

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Morning Peeps and Boro fans,

What a week of football news we've had. Off the pitch that is. It all started with the Mido incident at the beginning of the week and now, at the end of the week, all the news has been about Roy Keane leaving the Stadium of Light.

It seems that Boro are currently the most stable club in the North East. Gareth Southgate must be quietly smug about the situation of his two local rivals. First Kevin Keegan left his post at Newcastle earlier this season and now Keano has left Sunderland.

I was very surprised to hear the news that Roy had left Sunderland yesterday. He is a very astute character and is not one for giving in, so it confused me slightly when the Sunderland chairman, Nial Quinn said that Roy had left because he had taken the club as far as possible.

Keane is a winner through and through. My opinion is that he knew he wasn't going to get any help in the January transfer window to help strengthen his squad and decided to call it a day now rather than prolong the job with insufficient resources.

If Keane thought the team was going to be in a relegation battle I think he would have had a couple of ideas on who to bring in to help the team survive, but something has gone on behind the scenes that we've not heard about yet. I'm looking forward to reading part II of Keane's book when it comes out.

With both rival clubs in dire straits it seems that Gareth Southgate will be holding his head up slightly higher. I make him king of the North East now.

Our boss will feel more confident about his future now knowing that he has the best team in the North East. 

Hull City vs Middlesbrough

Gareth Southgate takes his band of merry men to the KC stadium tomorrow to face a couple of old team buddies. George Boateng, Nick Barmby and Dean Windass all play for the Tigers. Out of the three, George is the only player likely to face Boro on the pitch. It will be interesting to see Digard battle against our old boy.

Good news on the injury front ahead of the game. Robert Huth is back in the squad and Gary O'Neil has also made the game after recovering from a hamstring injury sustained against Bolton.

Probable line-up: Turnbull, Hoyte, Taylor, Pogatetz, Wheater, Aliadiere, Downing, O'Neil, Digard, Alves, Tuncay.

The bench will look something like this: Jones, Huth, Bates, Arca, Emnes, Mido, McMahon

Prediction: Hull's style of play should help Boro tomorrow because they play very attacking football. This will allow Boro to also have the freedom to attack. I'm predicting goals, goals and goals.

Hull City 2 Middlesbrough 4

What do the fans think? Will Boro get an away win?

Enjoy the game, see you there!

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Morning Peeps and Boro fans,

I hope everyone is fine and well? It sure was a cold one last night here in England. My early morning workout today consisted of scraping the ice off the car. Never mind using de-icer, give your arms a mini workout, I say.

I'm going to follow on from yesterdays blog about Arsenal's players ending up on Teesside. Ok, we only have two former Gooner's on board, but that could soon change with the arrival of Traore. A figure of around £4million has been slapped on the left back if we're serious about taking him.

Is this a fair amount for a 19-year-old French U21 international? I think so. Boro may not have the funds to throw about at any player, but if Southgate thinks he needs him, then I'm sure the money will appear from somewhere. Whether the money will come from the chairman or from selling on a couple of players remains uncertain yet.

One thing is sure though, we've been talking about Arsenal's youngsters and the amount of good teenagers they have got that are not playing in the first team. After their league cup exit last night, a fair few of those youngsters will probably only get a couple of substitute appearances from the remainder of the season's games.

Here is my point, Arsene Wenger may have to keep some of those players sweet by letting them go out to fellow Premiership teams on loan. I wouldn't be surprised to see a few of these North London youngsters being scattered across the country so they are able to play football.

Gareth Southgate obviously has a good relationship with Arsene Wenger because of the Aliadiere and Hoyte signings, plus he had very good words to say about our Gareth at the end of last season. 'An up and coming manager with lots of potential to lead a young team to glory' were the words that Wenger told one journalist. I would say that Arsene will be getting a Christmas card from the Boro manager this year.

It would be no shock to see an Arsenal youngster at the Riverside in the new year. I'm just wondering which one of their talents would suit a move to the cold of the north east for a few months.

A creative midfield player would be nice to fill that missing gap in the side. If Southgate was to be successful in landing an Arsenal player on loan it will also give the Boro boss more time to find the funds for a summer signing.

More news tomorrow. Keep warm people!

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Morning Peeps and Boro fans,

We're only two days into the festive season and the rumour mill is already bursting with transfer gossip.

I read last night that Axel Witsel is staying put at Standard Liege according to the club's vice-president. A bid of £17million had been rejected earlier this week for the 20-year-old midfielder, which confirms that Boro's interest in the young starlet is now officially over because we do not have that kind of money laying about.

Boro fans are still waiting for good news regarding a creative midfield player. We are desperate for an attacking midfielder to strengthen the team.

Steven Defour's name is still on everybody's lips concerning transfer rumours, but I must admit if Arsenal are interested in the Belgian maestro, then we may have to concede that possibility now before we get our hopes up.

A team of Arsenal cast-off's

Southgate might have a little plan when dealing with Arsene Wenger in January. The Boro boss is apparently interested in strengthening his left back situation. Taylor needs competition and cover so a move for Armand Traore looks likely. The Arsenal left back is currently on loan at Portsmouth and Wenger might be tempted to letting the 19-year-old Frenchman go if a cash offer plus Southgate's interest in Defour dies down.

If Southgate is successful in landing the Arsenal player, it would be another Gunner joining us. We already have Aliadiere and Justin Hoyte. To be honest I wouldn't mind having a team of Arsenal cast-off's, at least they are all good players that have been nurtured by arguably the best coach on the planet.

I can see what Gareth Southgate is doing with the team/squad. He wants to make the team a formidable force in the coming years so that's why he is purchasing players that are aged between 19 and 23-years-old. He is still building a team and is showing us that by bringing in players like Digard, Emnes and Hoyte. These players are not overnight stars, they are players for the future.

Boro fans are not fickle like many other Premier league club fans. We don't demand overnight success so when Southgate makes moves like this, we are right behind him. Just get it right soon yeah! Two more seasons for him to get his five-year plan spot on.

More gossip on its way when the rumour mill churns it out.

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Good Morning Peeps and Boro Fans,

The flu has been fully exorcised from my body, at last. Sorry I couldn't bring the pre-match blog on Friday morning, my head just couldn't handle all the lights and my fingure tips felt like small hammers as I attempted to type on the keypad.

I am in full voice this morning though and have a couple of things to get off my chest, other than the remainders of mucus. Sorry if you're still eating breakfast.

Sunday newspapers at it again

What really grips me is the match reports in the Sunday papers. Having seen the match myself and witnessed all the goings-on of the Tees-Derby on Saturday I was really pi**ed off when I read the Sunday Mail's match report. I'm not one for naming names so I'll leave the name of the little weasel out of this blog post.

He said that the Tees-Tyne derby was a flat affair and the crowd lacked atmosphere. Was this writer actually at the game? I don't think he was. I reckon he was sitting in his Surrey home watching the English rugby team get walloped by the all blacks. The next thing this idiot decided to frown upon was about our very talented, Afonso Alves. His words were - 'A £12.5million embarrassing advert for Brazilian football.'

Again, if the chap was at the game he would have noticed that Alves was one of the brightest sparks on the pitch. His footwork and touch was clear evidence that he is a gifted player.

I can't wait to see what this moron will write when Alves gets his goals.

Boro battle the barcodes

Southgate was pleased with his team's performance on Saturday as they claimed a point in the Tees-Tyne derby. I was also very pleased with the way they responded from last week's 3-1 defeat to Bolton.

The team will now be confident of getting a result at Hull this Saturday. The defensive showing was super on Saturday and it looks like Downing and Aliadiere have finally found their rhythm this season. Very pleasing to see.

So, on this cold Monday morning, I won't reflect too much on the retard that spoilt my Sunday reading. We can now look forward to the Hull game on Saturday.

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