Marko Arnautovic has a lot of swagger to his game. But he can't connect properly with this bouncing ball in the box. On the stretch he toe-ends one up and over the bar, looping harmlessly wide.

Boro finding themselves pegged back now. 

But well played by Victor Valdes to acrobatically punch clear Xherdan Shaqiri's cross from deep. 

Are the home side starting to think about protecting this? They still look dangerous on the counter though, as Gaston Ramirez looks to find Alvaro Negredo over the top with a long ball that has just too much on it.

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Marten de Roon is back out from the Boro dressing room sporting a very heavily strapped left leg. Hamstring injury it is for the £11.75m signing from Atalanta.

Ramirez gets two bites at it - the first corner's cleared behind by Pieters but the second's dealt with better.

And as possession slips into the Boro half Victor Valdes has to be lightening quick off his line to reach an Antonio Barragan backpass that's just slightly too short. Mark Arnautovic was keen... But danger averted.

Boro are in again here. Gaston Ramirez plays in Adomah and Phillip Wollscheid just steals in in time to toe it out for a corner... 

Phil Bardsley is the third Stoke player on a yellow. A very badly timed challenge on Albert Adomah. In his mind he was bravely sweeping the ball out of play, in reality it was a scissor-sweep of the Boro winger's spinning legs.

Mark Hughes looks like he's chewing on a bramble on that Stoke bench. I hope he's calmed down. He'll be hoping his players were paying attention at the break. I can only imagine the half-time team-talk...

Stoke's players are well out before Middlesbrough's here... 

Boro captain George Friend helps the ref with a quick count of heads and we are back under way. 

No changes for either side.

Dion Dublin
Former Leicester and Aston Villa forward on Final Score

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Middlesbrough don't look like a team that has just been promoted. They are getting a lot of players forward and they're good to watch.

The ref blows up on a first half with plenty for Boro to be pleased about. Big smiles from goalscorer Alvaro Negredo as he walks off. 

Adam Clayton wins a corner with a deflected shot from outside edge of the box....

And Gaston Ramirez's delivery hits the top of the bar!.. 

Scrambled clear by Stoke...

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Lovely little disguised pass from Marko Arnautovic into Xherdan Shaqiri in the box - the Switzerland international stabs on goal and thinks he's earned a corner off Valdes. Goal kick, says the ref. 

That's the first time we've seen Shaqiri in the danger zone though. Beautifully-timed run. Ghosted in, as the expression goes. 

Three minutes of time added on.

Always a game runner, Albert Adomah. He zooms up the field to earn Boro a corner. 

Ramirez delivers it to the near post - Negredo territory - but Ryan Shawcross is stronger. Out for a corner again, but this one is cleared beyond halfway by Erik Pieters.

Stoke get a corner and this is not at all convincing from Victor Valdes. He smashes his punched clearance into Negredo's face, it comes back up and Ramirez has to head clear from underneath his own crossbar under pressure from Diouf. 

Then it's a foul and a free-kick for Boro in their own box sees the danger pass. For now.

Marko Arnautovic takes his turn to blaze one over the bar. 

The Austria forward had worked himself into space by cutting inside from the right-back, but it's a disappointing effort. 

Bojan's was worse. Stoke's finishing has been pretty poor so far. 

So close to a second! It's that man, too. 

Gaston Ramirez beats Ryan Shawcross on the edge of the box, fires a left-footed drive low and true - Given is beaten - but it hits the outside of the post and spins wide. 

It wouldn't have been harsh on Stoke, either.

Apart from that nasty foul, Ramirez has been on song here. There's been some lovely touches to beat his man, and the link-up with Alvaro Negredo's been impressive. 

No doubt about who deserves to be ahead here as Negredo chases down Given, forcing him into a mis-kick.

Another Boro player goes in the book.

There's a bit of an elbow from Gaston Ramirez in his challenge with Erik Pieters - and Stoke keeper Shay Given is not happy.

He races out of his goal to make sure the ref's on top of things - he is and Ramirez is booked. And so is Given for his reaction. Top work there, Kevin Friend.

Stewart Downing's in the book now - a late challenge on Phillip Bardsley. Good decision. 

They play the free-kick quickly, it's launched up to Marko Arnautovic, whose deft touch on the head is comfortably stopped by Valdes. 

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Another Stoke corner as they start to make some territorial gains. Their first of the game went spiralling into the stands. This is better, played short, then spun in towards the back post and George Friend has to launch himself skyward to clear away from the imposing Mame Biram Diouf.

Former Barcelona keeper Victor Valdes' Boro debut remains a quiet one so far.