Middlesbrough vs West Bromwich Albion. Sky Bet Championship.
Riverside StadiumAttendance22,323.
Middlesbrough 2-0 West Bromwich Albion: Hayden Hackney and Ben Doak net in Boro win
Report and free match highlights from the Sky Bet Championship match between Middlesbrough and West Bromwich Albion at the Riverside Stadium on Tuesday night; Hayden Hackney and Ben Doak strike in each half in victory for Michael Carrick's Boro.
Tuesday 21 January 2025 23:19, UK
Tony Mowbray's return to the dugout ended in defeat as his West Brom side were beaten 2-0 by Middlesbrough at the Riverside Stadium.
The 61-year-old was appointed as Baggies head coach for a second stint and oversaw his first match since recovering from bowel cancer.
Mowbray was greeted with applause from both sets of fans as he walked to the touchline prior to kick-off to face Boro, who he represented both as a player and manager.
However, his return was dampened by his hometown club who sealed the win through Hayden Hackney's pinpoint strike and Ben Doak's equally magnificent top-corner finish.
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Victory ended a three-game winless run in all competitions for Michael Carrick's team, who moved above West Brom into the Sky Bet Championship play-off places.
The visitors fielded an unchanged team, while Boro made two alterations as Aidan Morris and Luke Ayling came into the starting line-up, replacing Dan Barlaser and George Edmundson, the latter of whom was recalled by parent club Ipswich ahead of the game.
Emmanuel Latte Lath had the first real chance when his shot was blocked by Alex Palmer and another promising Boro move saw skipper Ayling dispatch a menacing cross to the back post, but Darnell Furlong made a brilliant diving header to clear the danger.
They tested West Brom again from the right, this time Hackney crossing the ball in for Latte Lath, who could only fire over the crossbar.
West Brom had a fantastic chance when Karlan Grant sent a curling cross towards the far post and Tom Fellows raced to meet it but scuffed the ball behind.
Hackney put Boro ahead in the 29th minute after finding himself in plenty of space 25 yards out, smashing a low strike into the bottom corner.
The hosts looked to extend their advantage before the break as Finn Azaz had an effort from a tight angle pushed away by Palmer and Latte Lath hacked a chance wide before flicking a header past the goal minutes later.
West Brom attacked the Boro box either side of half-time, but were unable to fully threaten the home defence until Mikey Johnston came close with a sliced shot that flew wide in the 52nd minute.
Johnston was involved again when his cross was met by Mason Holgate, but the resulting header was pushed onto the post by Tom Glover and the goalkeeper was called into action moments later to deny Fellows at the near post.
Boro had posed some threat with another dangerous Ayling cross before Hackney attempted to replicate his first-half strike.
However, it was Doak who extended the lead in the 83rd minute with a fantastic curling effort from the edge of the box that went into the top corner.
West Brom nearly pulled a goal back in stoppage time, but John Swift's free-kick whistled past the post.
The managers
Middlesbrough's Michael Carrick:
"It was a good win, tough game they're a really good team, good players.
"I thought first half we were very good with the ball, I thought we controlled it for large bits, played some really good football and caused some problems playing through them, getting around the box.
"Second half, different side to us, but very good in terms of defence, shape, not giving much away when we had to.
"A natural feeling maybe of the boys desperate for a win and clean sheet, there was a bit more of a protective nature. I thought we defended particularly well for the most part.
"Really pleased with a win, it's a good step for us."
West Brom's Tony Mowbray:
"Any defeat you're disappointed and of course we're disappointed.
"I watched the last four Middlesbrough home games and they hadn't won any of them. You've got to try and prey on the anxiety, I suppose. We tried to start fast and I think we did for 10 minutes or so.
"Didn't score, I think that's a problem for us a little bit. It's a lack of goals, it's not as if we're winning many three or four nils.
"But if I look at the game to the end, I think second half we were much better than we were for the last half an hour of the first half.
"I think if we'd gone back to one each and I felt on the balance of the second half we could have easily got back to one each, but it just drifted away from us at the death."
