Middlesbrough

Middlesbrough boss Rob Edwards said his promotion-chasing side learnt a harsh lesson in their 3-0 loss at Watford.

Edwards felt his Boro players were caught on the counter-attack by Watford on his return to his former club.

"It's a really disappointing result," he told BBC Radio Tees.

"I was actually really excited about this game and I thought we started well. It was about managing those moments and the biggest part of our message to the boys, as soon as we lose it, make sure we manage their counter-attacks and stop them switching it because they have pace in the wide areas, and we didn't do that.

"There was not loads and loads wrong, and we got into areas loads of times, but didn't make it count. At both ends of the pitch, we were second best. We'll all learn from this."

Middlesbrough boss Rob Edwards is expecting a tough challenge from former club Watford as he prepares to make his first return to Vicarage Road.

Edwards was sacked by the Hornets in September 2022 after just 139 days and 10 Championship games in charge.

He faced Watford twice as Luton manager but both were at home and Edwards told BBC Radio Tees: "It'll be a nice experience, a new one to be going back.

"I wasn't there that long and it was a while ago now. It is, and has to be, just another game for me.

"You learn from every experience, good and bad. It was frustrating it was such a short spell, but it was probably the right thing for me and the club. I took a lot from it."

Watford have picked up 13 points from six home games and Edwards added: "They are very strong and Javi Gracia has gone back in there, an experienced and a very good coach, we're expecting a really challenging game, a difficult one for us."

Boro remain second in the Championship, three points behind leaders Coventry, but have scored only 16 goals across their opening 12 matches, 18 fewer than the Sky Blues.

Those goals have been shared among 11 players, with none scoring more than twice.

"There are a lot of additions across the league that are taking time to adapt to the league, at various clubs, some that are firing have maybe been in the league for a few years," said Edwards.

"We have to be patient and let lads settle in to a new country and environment, that's important.

"We created a lot of chances against Ipswich and Sheffield Wednesday and the second half intensity was brilliant against Wrexham.

"What Coventry are doing right now is not normal and there are only one or two others who have outscored us. Give us time and I'm sure things will click."

Riley McGree is set to feature against Watford but Alex Bangura misses out with illness.

Click here for the full interview with Edwards and more Middlesbrough content via BBC Sounds.

Image source, PA Media

Middlesbrough boss Rob Edwards says he has no concerns about his strikeforce in the Championship this season.

Boro go into this weekend's match with Edwards' previous side Watford in second place in the table.

They have scored 16 goals in 12 games - fewer than half the 34 hit by leaders Coventry - and no player has more than two goals in the league.

Coventry's Haji Wright and Brandon Thomas-Asante already have 17 league goals between them while Boro striker David Strelec has not scored in seven games for club and country.

Edwards told BBC Radio Tees: "Across the board there are a lot of new additions who have taken time to adapt and some who are firing have been in the league a few seasons.

"We have to be patient and allow lads to settle into a new country. We are always going to want more but we created a lot of chances last week. I am not too concerned. It always takes time.

"Coventry are doing what they are doing and so we will be compared to them but what they are doing is not normal.

"After that there are only a few teams who have outscored us and we have a good balance. Give us more time and I am sure things will improve."

Middlesbrough will seek to get back to winning ways as they head to Watford on Saturday (15:00 GMT).

Boro made hard work of a 1-1 draw against Wrexham at the Riverside last time out to fall three points behind Coventry, who overcame the 10-man Hornets 3-1 on the same afternoon.

Rob Edwards' side have claimed 11 points from their six away games this season, though their only defeat in their opening 12 games came on the road at Portsmouth.

Javi Gracia's men sit in 14th but have taken 13 points from their six home games and have won the past three at Vicarage Road, all by a 2-1 scoreline.

• Watford have won each of their past two league games against Middlesbrough and will be looking to win three in succession versus Boro for the first time in their EFL history.

• This century, Middlesbrough have won just two of their 12 away league games against Watford (D2 L8), losing on three of their past four visits to Vicarage Road.

• Watford have won 11 points from losing positions in the Championship so far this season, the most of any side in the competition.

• Excluding own goals, Middlesbrough have had the most different goalscorers so far in the 2025-26 Championship campaign (11).

• Watford remain the only Championship side without a clean sheet this season after 12 matches – it is the furthest the Hornets have ever gone into a second-tier campaign without keeping one.

"If he just plays the same players week in, week out, he [Boro boss Rob Edwards] says they will just break, so he has to mix it up. But that's difficult when you are trying to get attacking players in a rhythm and trying to get them to find form.

"Tommy Conway needs a goal, David Strelec needs a goal, Kaly Sene needs a goal - you are just waiting for one of them to take off and they will."

The Northern Echo's Dom Shaw and the Gazette's Craig Johns discuss the attacking conundrum at Middlesbrough.

Listen to the full analysis and more Middlesbrough content on BBC Sounds.

Image source, Rex Features

Former Middlesbrough full-back and BBC 72+ EFL pundit Tommy Smith has been named as Boro's new loans manager.

The 33-year-old, who also played for Huddersfield and Stoke over a 10-year playing career, retired earlier this year after sustaining a ruptured Achilles playing for Boro in October 2023.

His new role at the Riverside will see Smith maintain contact with players out on loan and their clubs to help their development.

"I'm absolutely delighted," he told the club website., external "It's a fantastic football club and I've really felt a part of it since I arrived as a player, so I'm over the moon to be carrying on, albeit in a slightly different role.

"I'm really grateful to the club for how they've been with me through the last two years. The support I've had through the injury and the retirement is something I'll be eternally grateful for.

"The role is all about getting the best out of the players who are out on loan. I'll be able to watch them train and play, be in regular contact and ultimately try to give them the best opportunity to come back and make a difference to Middlesbrough."

"I think first half that's as bad as I've seen us this season. In terms of intensity, all of those words we mentioned that Rob Edward's wants his team to have, they didn't have."

Listen to the post-match analysis from Matty Nixon, Neil Maddison and Dana Malt after Middlesbrough's 1-1 draw with Wrexham.

Hear the thoughts of boss Rob Edward's and defender Callum Brittain with Boro now three points behind leaders Coventry City.

Listen to the full episode and more on BBC Sounds.

Middlesbrough defender Callum Brittain says his team "must take the positives" despite dropping points at home to Wrexham on Saturday.

The 1-1 draw with the Red Dragons saw a three-point gap open up between Boro and leaders Coventry City after their 3-1 victory over Watford.

Brittain provided the assist for Hayden Hackney's equaliser but insisted the team made too many mistakes in the first half.

"I think we need to give ourselves credit for getting back into the game but we can't start games like that," he told BBC Radio Humberside.

"We were letting the opposition come onto us, we were making too many mistakes, but you have to take the positives from it, we're still unbeaten at home.

"We showed character second half, that's the main thing. We've got to make this place a fortress, we have to make it hard for other teams to come here.

"We definitely feed off the crowd, I though they were amazing today."

Boro travel to face Watford on Saturday (15:00 GMT).

Listen to the full interview and more on BBC Sounds.

Middlesbrough boss Rob Edwards said he has received an apology from PGMOL after referee Thomas Kirk did not award Tommy Conway a penalty kick during their 1-0 win against Sheffield Wednesday.

The forward was brought down following a heavy challenge from Owls goalkeeper Joe Lumley, however, Kirk waved away any penalty appeals.

"I've had a conversation with [the referee manager in the Championship] Kevin Friend on it, and it was a really good, open honest one, and they realised it should have been a penalty," Edwards told BBC Radio Tees.

"You can accept it now because no real harm was done. People are human beings, they can make mistakes, but I just felt like that was a clear one."

Boro meet Wrexham on Saturday (15:00 BST), with the potential to top the league should Coventry City falter in their lunchtime fixture against Watford.

The Red Dragons have enjoyed three successive promotions under current boss Phil Parkinson, and while the Welsh side have not yet emerged as contenders to make it a fourth, Edwards has plenty to admire about the club.

"What Phil has done, I'm not sure anyone has done that. It's incredible what he's done from a managerial point of view," Edwards said.

"It's pretty special what they've achieved there."

Listen to the full interview with Edwards and more Middlesbrough content on BBC Sounds.

Middlesbrough and Wrexham will meet for the first time ever in the English Football League when they face off at the Riverside on Saturday (15:00 BST).

For Boro, victory could see them back at the apex should Coventry City fail to get a result earlier in the day against Watford.

Wrexham will not be able to escape the midtable with an additional three points to their name but they would begin a winning streak having beaten Oxford United last time out - and defeating Middlesbrough is something boss Phil Parkinson would love to add to his CV.

• This is the first ever league meeting between Middlesbrough and Wrexham – it's the first time Middlesbrough are facing a side for the first time since January 2021, winning 3-1 vs Wycombe.

• Wrexham and Middlesbrough last faced in December 1999 in the FA Cup, with the Welsh side winning 2-1 thanks to goals from Robin Gibson and Darren Ferguson.

• Middlesbrough have won eight of their last 11 home league matches (D2 L1), with their only defeat in this run coming against last season's champions Leeds in April.

• After losing their last away league game 1-0 to Stoke, Wrexham will be looking to avoid recording consecutive defeats on the road for just the third time since returning to the EFL in 2023 (January 2025 and a run of three in February 2024).

• Wrexham manager Phil Parkinson has lost all four of his previous league meetings with Middlesbrough, losing both games in 2017-18 and 2018-19 with Bolton, failing to score in any match.

Image source, PA Media

Middlesbrough head coach Rob Edwards says it was a case of "job done" after their narrow win at troubled Sheffield Wednesday.

Morgan Whittaker's sixth minute goal proved enough although only a series of saves from Owls debutant goalkeeper Joe Lumley prevented the visitors from finishing the game off.

Without that buffer, Edwards was just pleased that those missed chances did not prove costly.

"We got the job done in the end," he told BBC Radio Tees. "All that mattered was the three points, not really how we did it.

"We didn't get the second goal, which I think we deserved and that always kept them in it, always kept them believing they were one moment away from something.

"So I was really pleased to keep the clean sheet and the win in the end."

Sheffield Wednesday will be aiming not to get stranded at the bottom of the table as the side welcome Middlesbrough on Wednesday (20:00 BST).

The Owls lost to Charlton Athletic on the weekend to see them fall to the basement, level on points with Sheffield rivals United and two points below Derby County hovering above the relegation line.

But second placed Middlesbrough will be an incredibly tough task for the struggling side, with Rob Edwards' men keeping a firm eye on the top spot and keen to keep space between them and those below.

• Although Sheffield Wednesday have only won one of their last five league games against Middlesbrough (D2 L2), that was the most recent in April (2-1).

• After winning four successive league visits to Sheffield Wednesday from 2015-16 to 2019-20, Middlesbrough have since failed to win their last three (D1 L2).

• Sheffield Wednesday have won just one of their last 15 home league games (D5 L9) – though that was against Middlesbrough in April (2-1).

• Middlesbrough are winless in their last three away league outings (D2 L1), after having won their first two of the season prior to this.

• Sheffield Wednesday have only lost one of their last 14 midweek (Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday) league games (W6 D7), a 0-1 home defeat to Blackburn in December 2024.

Image source, Getty Images

Head coach Rob Edwards loved watching his Middlesbrough side defeat Ipswich Town as they returned to the top of the Championship.

The 2-1 victory at the Riverside saw them leapfrog Coventry City into first place and ended a three-game spell without a win.

Boro had failed to score in two of those and it had raised a few questions after their excellent early season form.

So Edwards was delighted with how his players responded to beat the pre-season favourites for promotion.

"I loved us tonight," he told BBC Radio Tees.

"The energy, the intensity, the work-rate, the desire to win the ball back, the blocks. I loved that, that side of us was great. We carried a threat and we scored a magnificent second goal.

"I'm really proud of the lads and I feel privileged to be part of this because I think it was a really good game.

"We dropped a few points, one or two questions were asked and we've delivered and answered them. But what we've got to do is be consistent and keep that going."

Middlesbrough have unveiled their new crest which will be used from next season onwards.

The Teesside club have also launched a special crest specifically for the 2026-27 campaign, that will feature a 150 year Ayresome Park gates inspired addition to the logo to celebrate their inception in 1976.

The new badge has been restored back to a circle, a design that hasn't been permanent on a Boro kit since 2007.

The design process began in March 2024, before 21,000 supporters were asked for their help in designing the badge to represent their club.

The crest's designer Andrew Patterson spoke to BBC Radio Tees about some of the subtle local features in the new design.

"Going on what fans asked for there was a desire to get some of the local sites into the crest somehow," Patterson said.

"So it was quite nice to subtly bring in the Roseberry Topping element into the lion's mane which is the negative space that sits between the lion's mane and his body, so that profile of Roseberry Topping is in there.

"Also the shape of the River Tees, where our home, where our ground is at the Riverside Stadium. The shape of that is in the lions tongue, so you can see the meanders of the river at that point is brought into the tongue."

The new badge is set to be in use from June 2026 onwards.

Image source, Middlesbrough FC

Image source, Opta

The international break is finally over and the Championship weekend begins in style on Friday night as Middlesbrough welcome Ipswich to the Riverside (20:00 BST).

Rob Edwards' side will seek to get back on track after losing their unbeaten record and top-spot in the table last time out with a 1-0 defeat at Portsmouth on 4 October.

The Tractor Boys were 3-1 winners over Norwich in the East Anglian Derby the following day to jump up to ninth, but within striking distance of the top-three.

• Middlesbrough failed to beat Ipswich in the last league season they played together in 2023-24 (D1 L1), after winning five of the previous seven encounters (D2).

• Ipswich could win successive league games at Middlesbrough for the first time, after winning 2-0 on their last league visit in December 2023.

• Middlesbrough, who went down last time out to Portsmouth, could lose successive league games for the first time since April, while they haven't failed to score in three successive league matches since April 2022 (run of four).

• Only Coventry and Queens Park Rangers (both 11) have won more points in the Championship since the start of September than Ipswich (10), while they've scored 13 goals across their past five games since a 1-0 defeat to Preston North End.

• Nine of Ipswich's past 12 Championship goals have been scored by either Jack Clarke (4) or Jaden Philogene (5) – Clarke has found the net in four of his past five games, with three of those coming as a substitute.

Image source, Getty Images

Middlesbrough head coach Rob Edwards says he is looking to increase his side's attacking potential as the Championship returns on Friday.

Boro host Ipswich Town (20:00 BST) as they try to respond to their first defeat of the season at Portsmouth last time out.

That loss knocked them off the top of the table with Coventry City overtaking them, while it was also a second consecutive game without a goal.

Boro have the joint-best defensive record in the division with only six conceded in nine matches, but it is at the top end where Edwards wants more.

"We've been very solid, one of the best in the league, which is great and everyone needs a solid foundation," the ex-Luton Town boss told BBC Radio Tees.

"Then we want to find that balance between maintaining that and obviously creating a little bit more.

"In recent games that has been a little bit more challenging."

Middlesbrough had a busy transfer window with 11 new players joining the club.

In attack, they have included Slovakia striker David Strelec, Senegalese forward Kaly Sene and winger Sontje Hansen, who has just made his debut for Curacao, with all three new to English football.

Sene has scored twice, and the other two one each, but Edwards understands that the trio are still settling in to the environment.

"It's not going to be click the fingers and things are perfect straight away," he said. "People have got to build up a rapport, they've got to understand each other's games.

"That will still take some time, there's no doubt about it."