0-1 M. Forss (20') 1-1 Bae Jun-ho (45') 1-2 F. Azaz (52') 1-3 T. Conway (73')
The pressure on Michael Carrick would have been put on hold momentarily after his Middlesbrough side pulled off a dominant victory against Stoke City at bet365 Stadium.
Marcus Forss opened the scoring inside 20 minutes before Bae Jun-Ho finished emphatically on the stroke of half time to send both sides into the break level.
And, although Stoke were somewhat threatening at times, Middlesbrough’s attacking force was ultimately too much, with Finn Azaz firing his side into a winning position on 52 minutes.
Then, with 17 minutes remaining, Tommy Conway – who missed from two-yards out earlier in the game – finished clinically into the back of the net to put the Potters out of their misery.
Story of the Match
Middlesbrough’s play-off hopes over the last few weeks had faded, but vying to pull off a league double over the Potters for the first time since 2020, Carrick’s side responded perfectly to Jun-Ho’s equaliser on 45 minutes as they took the lead just seven minutes after the restart.
Hayden Hackney supplied Conway, who had his back to goal before sending Azaz through on the overlap down the left.
It didn’t take the 24-year-old long before he converted an emphatic shot with his left-foot into the bottom right corner, beating Johnasson with his strike across goal.
Matters were made worse for Stoke when Conway scored Boro’s third with just under 20 minutes remaining.
It was Conway who created his own success when he dribbled around substitute Lewis Koumas before releasing a quick pass to Azaz, who instantly returned the ball to the forward.
Conway’s finish was one that ultimately closed the game off, sending Viktor Johansson the wrong way while firing the ball into the bottom right corner.
Earlier on in the tie, it was Forss who opened the scoring and, for a team and manager who were desperate for a win here, it was the perfect start following a run of five consecutive defeats.
Morgan Whittaker started with the ball in the middle, having been supplied by Azaz, and soon handed possession to Forss on the right as he made his way into the box.
From there, Forss established the opportunity to cut onto his left foot and away from defender Enda Stevens, before dispatching a thunderous strike into the top left corner to break the deadlock.
Despite the perfect start, Stoke – on the stroke of half-time – managed to pull themselves back into the tie, even though they seemed behind in all aspects of the match at that point.
Nathan Lowe was one of the hosts’ biggest threats and played a key part in the goal when he directed a ball in behind for Andrew Moran to run onto on the right, inside of the box.
And the pass that followed from Moran, across the box, found Jun-Ho, unmarked at the back post, for an easy and clinical finish into the bottom left corner.
On 28 minutes, Middlesbrough could have doubled their lead if it wasn’t for a horrendous miss from Conway.
Forss was sent down the right flank and played a rapid pass across the face of goal which flew past Johansson, giving the Boro forward an open goal to tap into. Then, Conway, who was just two yards out, fired into Row Z, forcing sighs of relief from the home fans.
Just moments later, Stoke came close twice in the same run of play and, if it weren’t for Mark Travers, the hosts could have forced an earlier equaliser before Jun-Ho’s goal on the stroke of half time.
Stevens crossed from the left and the ball was met by Lowe, who pulled it back to Lewis Baker on the edge of the area before his shot was parried out by Travers, making a strong block.
Million Manhoef, who started for the first time since returning from a long-term absence, came pacing in for the rebound, but Travers made sure to deny that opportunity as well.
