Middlesbrough 3-0 Stoke City: Boro inflict fourth loss in five on Potters
- Published
Paddy McNair's goal was his second in consecutive home games for Middlesbrough
Stoke City suffered a fourth Championship loss in five games as a resurgent Middlesbrough eased to victory at the Riverside.
Grant Hall gave Boro the lead as he side-footed home from close range after Chuba Akpom had flicked on Mark Bola's corner.
Paddy McNair doubled the lead shortly before the break after picking up Yannick Bolasie's pass on the left and curling a low effort through defender Harry Souttar's legs into the bottom corner.
Nathaniel Mendez-Laing's late third goal sealed victory as he dinked the ball over Angus Gunn after the hosts hit their opponents on the break.
Middlesbrough remain eight points off the play-off places after sixth-placed Barnsley won at Bournemouth, while Stoke slip to 11th in the table.
Stoke started the game well hitting the post in the first 20 seconds from a Jacob Brown cross, while Steven Fletcher had a sixth-minute penalty appeal turned down and Tommy Smith hit the side netting.
But after those chances Boro boss Neil Warnock moved McNair into midfield and employed a back four with almost immediate effect as Hall scored soon after.
Following the goal Stoke struggled as Neeskens Kebano shot into the side netting and then flashed an effort wide in between his side's two goals as Warnock's men took control.
McNair hit the side netting 10 minutes after the restart before Stoke threw on extra attacking enforcements to try and get something out of the game.
But the Potters were thwarted by an inspired Marcus Bettinelli in the Boro goal - with his side two-up he kept out Nick Powell's glancing header from a corner and Fletcher's hooked volley with 14 minutes to go.
Middlesbrough manager Neil Warnock told BBC Tees:
"It was a must-win really. No good beating about the bush, we'd have been completely out of it today [had we not won]. It's still a hard struggle with other teams getting the results, but what we've got to do is try to not let it fizzle out.
"I thought we enjoyed our game today, we had a lot of threats. We had to change the system almost straight away because they dominated that first 10 minutes and fortunately we didn't concede a goal, but once we changed I thought we were on top.
"I thought we marshalled the game well in the second half and waited for that opportunity. We could have scored a few more in the second half, we had some great breakaways and I thought we looked really dangerous today."
Stoke City manager Michael O'Neill told BBC Radio Stoke:
"I thought we started the game very well, very dominant, possibly should have done better with what we had in terms of possession. We didn't create enough with the level of possession that we had.
"Then we conceded off a corner which we've got to defend better and then it's going to be difficult because Middlesbrough will dig in, make life difficult for you, slow the game down and the second goal was a poor goal as well.
"I thought second half we were dominant again, the goalkeeper made some good saves.
"I felt if we could have got the game back to 2-1 we would have given ourselves a chance, but we didn't and we lost a goal right at the death when we were pushing forward and again defensively we should do better in that situation."