Boro 0 Wigan 0: Half-hearted Alves exposes flaws of Southgate's side

Middlesbrough's 14th League game without a win provided an appropriate commentary on manager Gareth Southgate's typically frank programme notes. 'I am conscious that almost everyone outside this club has already written us off,' observed the manager.Well, this result and performance will change few minds. Boro stumbled another step towards the trap door and it does not need a football visionary to pinpoint the reason why. Up front they are bereft of quality and, as a result, they have played eight-and-aquarter hours of League football without scoring.Wigan, stoically defensive and eagerly competitive, restricted Middlesbrough's opportunities to a minimum. If Middlesbrough's plight needed the perfect illustration it was in another ineffectual contribution by Brazilian striker Afonso Alves. The £12million signing last January is their top League scorer with four goals . enough said. Stretchered off: Managers Steve Bruce (left) and Gareth Southgate show their concern for Didier Digard Middlesbrough v Wigan: How the game unfoldedWIGAN NEWS FROM ACROSS THE WEBMIDDLESBROUGH NEWS FROM ACROSS THE WEBMan United 2-1 BlackburnAston Villa 0-1 ChelseaMan United 2-1 BlackburnArsenal 0-0 SunderlandBolton 2-1 West HamStoke 2-2 Portsmouth Anything worth reporting in the game came in a fiery first half. Typically it was Lee Cattermole, back on his old stamping ground, who lit the fuse with a teak-hard, yet fair, 17th-minute tackle.Didier Digard was the victim and five minutes of treatment for a thigh injury were not enough to prevent him being ferried off on a stretcher and taken to hospital but referee Mike Dean quite justifiably kept the yellow card in his pocket.Wigan manager Steve Bruce exchanged heated words with Middlesbrough coach Steve Agnew, accusing him of whipping the crowd up into a state of frenzy. Aerial duel: Wigan Athletic's Ben Watson, right, controls the ball as Middlesbrough's Adam Johnson, left, looks on Bruce said: 'On reflection I was a bit of a prat, but that happens when you get involved in the game. I'll be sharing a beer with Steve in a minute. It was a perfectly fair challenge from a tough tackling player. Nobody likes to see a player carried off but it happens in football.'It seemed at times there might have been an agenda against Cattermole, with Middlesbrough players falling over whenever they got within touching distance of the midfielder.Chances were few and far between. A shot from Stewart Downing that Chris Kirkland pushed wide in the 35th minute and a similar good save by Brad Jones from a Charles N'Zogbia free-kick four minutes later were the only first-half opportunities of note, while the second period was equally devoid of excitement. Close contact: David Wheater (right) battles for the ball with Wigan Athletic's Amr Zaki Middlesbrough have twice managed Houdini-like escapes in the past two seasons. Sadly, it looks like third time unlucky.Bruce praised the resilience of his side. 'We looked more comfortable as the game went on and in the end I thought we could have pinched it,' he added.  Middlesbrough v Wigan: How the game unfoldedWIGAN NEWS FROM ACROSS THE WEBMIDDLESBROUGH NEWS FROM ACROSS THE WEBMan United 2-1 BlackburnAston Villa 0-1 ChelseaMan United 2-1 BlackburnArsenal 0-0 SunderlandBolton 2-1 West HamStoke 2-2 Portsmouth  

Source: Daily_Mail