Can high-flying Boro end the Forest hoodoo?

Can high-flying Boro end the Forest hoodoo?

Tuesday’s night convincing 3-1 victory against Brentford made it three consecutive wins for Middlesbrough who have met all expectation by making a strong start to the season.

Aitor Karanka’s men find themselves second in the Championship table behind early pacesetters Brighton, and although we all know from last season’s adventure that the season is much more of a marathon than a sprint, putting ourselves in a strong position early doors can only be good for morale and confidence. High spirits at the Riverside were lifted even further by the embrace between Albert Adomah and Aitor Karanka on the touchline after the winger finished off a wonderful move to all but secure three points against the Bees, suggesting that all is forgiven following their recent spat.

These spirits will have to remain sky high if Middlesbrough are to come away from their next fixture with a positive result, with a daunting trip to bogey team Nottingham Forest in Saturday’s early kick off providing a stern test. Those who are brave enough to back Middlesbrough can receive the best odds, along with keep up to date with the latest score if they are not able to go to the City Ground or watch the game on Sky Sports, on footballscores.com, but as Middlesbrough have only won three of their last twenty-nine trips to Nottingham Forest, Karanka’s men may be considered underdogs. However, the team have already proved that history is there to be broken following the impressive victory at Hillsborough against Sheffield Wednesday, but lightning will have to strike twice if Middlesbrough are to record their first win at the City Ground since 1999.

Middlesbrough were made to rue several missed chances at the City Ground last season as the push for automatic promotion suffered a blow, with Nottingham Forest coming from behind after conceding an own goal to win 2-1. Consecutive away-day victories against Queens Park Rangers and Birmingham would suggest that Dougie Freedman’s side will also come into the game that will receive live updates via footballscores.com in form, although Nottingham Forest have won just one of their three league games at home this season. Losing to League One side Walsall in the Capital One Cup on home soil would suggest that Middlesbrough have more than a chance of coming away with a positive result, with Nottingham Forest’s 2-1 win over Rotherham being the only three points they have picked up in the previous seven Championship fixtures in front of their own fans.

Karanka appears to have no fresh injury concerns following the victory against Brentford, although it remains to be seen if Ben Gibson is able to return from a hamstring injury. The Nunthorpe-born centre-back is awaiting scan results before the club are able to tell how serious the problem he picked up early in the second half against MK Dons is. Adomah’s superb impact from the bench may be enough for him to start at Nottingham Forest, while Emilio Nsue did his chances of making the right back spot his own no harm with an excellent performance against the Bees. The Middlesbrough manager certainly has plenty of options at his disposal as he hopes to put together a plan that will make his team’s start to the season an even better one at the City Ground.

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