Middlesbrough vs Everton. Carabao Cup Quarter-Final.
Riverside StadiumAttendance31,628.
Tuesday 1 December 2015 19:12, UK
Middlesbrough and Everton battle it out for a place in the Capital One Cup semi-finals in front of the Sky Sports cameras on Tuesday night.
Fresh from their dramatic penalty shoot-out victory over Manchester United in the previous round, Aitor Karanka's side will be looking to book their place in the last four at the expense of another Premier League team.
Just three games stand between Boro and a place in February's final at Wembley, and with it a chance of emulating their League Cup winning campaign in 2004.
They will be hoping to make home advantage count against an Everton side who head to the Riverside Stadium in a rich vein of goalscoring form.
The Toffees have scored 15 goals in their last five games in all competitions and, similarly to Boro, booked their place in the quarter-finals with a penalty shoot-out victory, over Norwich City.
With Arsenal, Chelsea and United having all been dumped out of the competition at earlier stages, this year's tournament presents Everton with a realistic chance of ending a 20-season wait for silverware.
Team news
Karanka has a full-strength squad to choose from for the game against Roberto Martinez's Toffees, and could hand Uruguayan striker Cristhian Stuani his first start since he recovered from an injury sustained on international duty.
Meanwhile, Everton midfielders James McCarthy (hip) and Gareth Barry (shin) are unlikely to be risked for the trip to Teesside, having sustained injuries in Everton's 3-3 draw at Bournemouth on Saturday.
Left-back Leighton Baines could be part of the matchday squad for the first time this season after ankle surgery, but will not play from the start.
Joel Robles will resume his role as cup goalkeeper, with Tim Howard dropping to the bench.
Opta stats
Middlesbrough have twice made the quarter-final stage of the League Cup since lifting the trophy in 2004, losing to Blackburn in 05/06 and Swansea in 12/13.
This is the furthest Everton have got in the League Cup since 2007/08, eventually losing in the semi-final that season to Chelsea.
Boro have won the last two League Cup ties against Everton, beating them on penalties in the fourth round in December 2003, and 1-0 in the third round in October 2005.
The Toffees are unbeaten in six matches in all competitions against Boro, winning four and drawing two. The last time they met, Everton were 2-1 victors in an FA Cup quarter-final clash.
Boro's last two League Cup games against Premier League sides have ended in penalty shoot-outs - beating Manchester United in this season's fourth round but losing to Liverpool 14-13 last season.
Everton have fallen behind in all three of their League Cup matches this season, needing extra time in two matches to progress.
The Toffees have conceded in each of their last seven League Cup games away from home.
Charlie Nicholas' prediction
Now this is a cracking game. Middlesbrough can be cautious but when they come out and play well, as we saw against Manchester United, they're a good side. They're structurally well organised and that's why I thought at the start of the season they have to be serious promotion candidates. The one thing they're lacking is a really prolific striker but they do have midfield runners which make their contributions.
Everton on the other hand were all over the place defensively and how they let Bournemouth snatch a point on Saturday was absolutely ridiculous. They're an exciting side going forward though and I do have a feeling that they could have a trophy in them. Ross Barkley and Romelu Lukaku are playing so well right now, while Arouna Kone is also dangerous. I'm going for them to edge another thriller here.
Charlie predicts: 2-3 with Kone to score first (140/1 with Sky Bet)
Betting
Everton are Sky Bet's 13/10 favourites for the victory with Middlesbrough 2/1 while the draw and resulting extra-time is a 12/5 chance. The Toffees are currently rated 15/2 fourth favourites to win the competition compared to their hosts' price of 18/1. Romelu Lukaku is the 9/2 favourite in the first goalscorer betting while Kike heads the market from Boro's side of the market at 6/1. Lukaku and Ross Barkley have each found the net in both of their side's last two matches and are 17/2 to both be on the scoresheet again on Tuesday night.
Watch Middlesbrough v Everton live on Tuesday, 7.30pm, Sky Sports 1 HD. The draw for the semi-finals is live on Sky Sports News HQ following Wednesday's Southampton v Liverpool match.
