Middlesbrough 0 Cardiff City 1

14 December 2009 10:28
Middlesbrough 0 Cardiff City 1[LNB] THESE are worrying times on Teesside. Steve Gibson, the Middlesbrough chairman, might have been discussing ways of saving the area's steel industry before the game, but this morning he should be assessing ways of saving his football club's season.[LNB] Middlesbrough's hopes of making a quick return to the Premier League are fading fast after a fortuitous winner from Chris Burke's free-kick proved enough to inflict another defeat on Gordon Strachan.[LNB] Whether it was the Boro defence's fault for not holding the right line, goalkeeper Brad Jones's mistake for not coming to gather a ball that bounced in his six-yard area, or a collective failure, the fact remains that Strachan's men remain nine points shy of the Championship's top two.[LNB] With table-toppers Newcastle United next on the agenda at St James' Park on Sunday, there is an opportunity for deflated- Boro to record a result capable of revitalising a disintegrating season.[LNB] At least the game's not at the Riverside, so at least they stand a chance.[LNB] Cardiff's winner was enough to inflict the sixth defeat of the season on home turf for Middlesbrough, a statistic that highlights where things have been going wrong and why supporters are staying away.[LNB] In front of the Riverside's record low crowd for a league game, 17,232, Middlesbrough might not have been as poor as they were against Blackpool on Tuesday night, but again they emerged with nothing to show for their efforts.[LNB] While Cardiff climb up to third after a third successive victory, Strachan is left with a record of just five points from a possible 21 since taking over from Gareth Southgate.[LNB] It was a defeat to Cardiff 21 months ago that many Middlesbrough fans view as the real turning point of Southgate's reign.[LNB] That day he failed to motivate his players for an FA Cup quarter-final against lower league opposition and Cardiff booked a date at Wembley.[LNB] After the Welshmen's latest success in the North-East, Strachan must be hoping this defeat to Cardiff does not turn large sections of the supporters against him.[LNB] Having heard his team roundly jeered off following the midweek horror show against Blackpool, Strachan spoke of an intention to banish the memories in an attempt to be successful. He failed.[LNB] The unpredictable Scot feels he has found a formula to deliver away from the Riverside, highlighted by four points from their last two trips.[LNB] But in an attempt to stumble across the solution to Middlesbrough's home woe he outlined a desire to change a few things.[LNB] While one alteration was forced in the absence of Gary O'Neil, Strachan opted to leave out Julio Arca and Leroy Lita.[LNB] What that meant was that Cardiff had the imposing forward line of Dave Kitson and Marcus Bent to deal with, one which centre-backs Mark Hudson and Anthony Gerrard relished.[LNB] There was one occasion in the first half when it was breached, but Bent wasted it.[LNB] Rhys Williams, back in central midfield in the absence of O'Neil, picked out his teammate, who had worked his way behind the Bluebirds' back four.[LNB] Bent took an age to turn and when he did he dallied before rolling to Kitson. By that time Hudson and Paul Quinn had regrouped, before Kitson's low drive was blocked around 12 yards out.[LNB] That flash arrived just before the half hour and there was very little to test either goalkeeper before that, even if there had been a couple of openings.[LNB] Middlesbrough adopted a shoot-on-sight policy early on, with Isaiah Osbourne's shot from distance being thwarted by David Marshall before Kitson struck the rebound wide.[LNB] There was a similar outcome when Michael Chopra, the former Newcastle and Sunderland man, found space, albeit at a difficult angle, before shooting a few yards the wrong side of Jones' far post.[LNB] With very little between the sides, Middlesbrough could have taken control had they proved more of a threat in the final third.[LNB] By the interval, however, the only danger to Marshall's goal was when he threw himself to turn a Mark Yeates free-kick from 22 yards away for a corner.[LNB] Strachan has tended to use a trick Southgate used regularly swapping his two wingers regularly to test the full-backs.[LNB] A more straightforward approach was used yesterday, with Yeates operating on the left and Johnson on the right.[LNB] And immediately after the restart the latter darted in from the flank, took on two defenders before shooting well off target, much to his own frustration.[LNB] From that moment on the frustration grew among the supporters and Middlesbrough's players found it extremely difficult to hold possession.[LNB] It was a flaw that led to their downfall, no matter how bizarre the goal was.[LNB] After Jay Bothroyd fell to the floor near the far touchline to earn a free-kick, Burke weighed up the best area to deliver to and was amazed to witness the outcome.[LNB] His right-foot curler floated over the heads of the static Boro defence from some 30 yards out, bounced before Jones and hit the back of the net.[LNB] The gasps of disbelief among the home fans said it all.[LNB] Cardiff 's lead led to the introduction of Lita at the expense of Kitson and it had an instant impact.[LNB] Wheater's header off the bar fell to Sean St Ledger, who was denied by Joe Ledley. Then Lita leapt to head towards goal only for Adam Matthews to clear from the line.[LNB] Lita also poked an effort inches wide of Marshall's upright minutes later, but Middlesbrough could find no way through to level things up.[LNB] This latest defeat leaves Middlesbrough almost as close to the relegation zone as it does to the Championship's top two, but it is the weakening probability of promotion that is concerning Gibson and Strachan.[LNB] Match facts Goals:[LNB] 0-1: Burke (61, curled over a free-kick that missed everyone including Jones) Bookings: Gerrard (37, foul); Ledley (73, foul)[LNB] Referee: Grant Hegley (Bishop Stortford) could have awarded Boro a first-half penalty but correctly decided against it. 6[LNB] Attendance: 17,232[LNB] Entertainment: [LNB] MIDDLESBROUGH (4-4-2):[LNB] 4 Jones: Bamboozled by Burke's free-kick when he should have done better.[LNB] 6 McMahon: Solid enough on his return to full-back after being left out of the last couple[LNB] 7 St Ledger: Unruffled by Chopra and Bothroyd, even if he never found his top form[LNB] 7 WHEATER: Appeared to win every block and header that came his way[LNB] 5 Pogatetz: Found Cardiff's pacy winger Burke a handful;[LNB] 6 Yeates: Went close with a curling free-kick and enjoyed plenty possession[LNB] 6 Osbourne: Tested Marshall early on with a long drive which was pushed away[LNB] 5 R Williams: Slotted back into his central midfield role comfortably[LNB] 6 Johnson: Looked the one capable of finding an opener but not often enough;[LNB] 5 Kitson: Again most of his best work was done outside the penalty area[LNB] 5 Bent: Involved regularly on his recall and could have scored.[LNB] Subs:[LNB] Lita (for Kitson 61): Had a header cleared off the line seconds after introduction. 6 Emnes (for Johnson 68): Asked to inject urgency and failed. 5 (not used): Hoyte, L Williams, Arca, Hines, Coyne.[LNB] CARDIFF CITY (4-4-2): Marshall 7; Quinn 6, Gerrard 6, Hudson 7, McNaughton 6 (Matthews 51, 5); BURKE 7, Ledley 6, Rae 6, Whittingham 5 (Etuhu 33, 7 (McCormack 82) ); Bothroyd 5, Chopra 5.[LNB] Subs: Enckelman, Kennedy, Taiwo, Wildig[LNB] MAN OF THE MATCH[LNB] CHRIS Burke stormed into life in the second half after scoring his freak winner.[LNB]

Source: Northern_Echo