Middlesbrough v Newcastle preview

Hughton: Seeking fifth straight win

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Newcastle's charge towards the Championship crown sees them visit local rivals Middlesbrough at the Riverside Stadium.

The Magpies sit six points clear of second-placed West Brom and have 12 games left to wrap up an automatic return to the Premier League.

A 6-1 hammering of Barnsley last week provided another reminder of the dominance exerted by Chris Hughton's side.

They can take another step towards that goal with a win over their local rivals, who's own promotion hopes aren't going as well as they had hoped.

Boro's last six has seen them win three and lose three, with the inconsistency hindering their attempts to make up ground on the play-off places.

They sit four places and five points shy of sixth place and any hopes of reducing that gap will be difficult against a Newcastle side looking to record a fifth straight win.

Boro news

Middlesbrough chief Gordon Strachan will be without striker Jeremie Aliadiere for six weeks after he broke his leg in the 1-0 defeat at Cardiff.

Strachan could have fellow front man Scott McDonald available, though, after the former Celtic man returned to training following a hernia operation.

The 26-year-old will be assessed head of the game to determine whether he is fit enough to feature.

Wilo Flood is a doubt after limping out of the Cardiff game. The midfielder is awaiting a full assessment on the extent of his knee injury.

Emanuel Pogatetz is unlikely to play any part due to a knee problem, although Chris Riggott could make the squad after recovering from a hamstring problem.

Tony McMahon (foot), Seb Hines and Matthew Bates (both ligaments) are all long-term absentees for Boro.

United news

Newcastle boss Hughton could be boosted by the return of Jose Enrique and Wayne Routledge for the derby trip.

Enrique returned after a seven-game lay-off with a hamstring injury against Barnsley last weekend, but lasted barely half an hour before he felt a tightness and was withdrawn as a precaution.

However, the Spaniard is expected to be fit as the Coca-Cola Championship leaders attempt to take another step towards promotion on Teesside.

Winger Routledge has sat out the last three matches with a calf problem but could also be included.

However, Alan Smith is likely to miss out with the ankle injury which kept him sidelined for the 6-1 rout of Barnsley, while Joey Barton has only 45 minutes of reserve-team action under his belt following a lengthy spell out.