Middlesbrough had a chance to briefly overtake promotion rivals Ipswich Town and create some distance from Millwall, but instead ended up with a 2-2 draw against Swansea City on Easter Monday evening. The match was filled with dramatic moments, including three penalties, and costly errors that ultimately cost the team valuable points at a critical time in the season.
After taking the lead through Alex Bangura, Middlesbrough conceded two soft penalties, allowing Swansea to take the lead at halftime. Tommy Conway converted his own penalty to secure a point for his side. Despite the result, Boro manager Kim Hellberg expressed satisfaction with the team’s performance.
“I think over 80 minutes we were brilliant with the ball and how we pressed. So I’m very happy with that and, of course, coming back – the character. It could have been easy, after those results we’ve had lately – not going our way – to go down today.”
The match also saw some mixed performances from Middlesbrough players, with three instances of 5/10 efforts due to rash decisions. However, Hellberg praised the team’s resilience and mental strength during the game.
Meanwhile, promotion rivals Ipswich Town managed to secure a 2-1 victory over Birmingham City at home after being behind 1-0. On the other hand, Millwall, who previously defeated Middlesbrough on Good Friday, suffered an unexpected loss at home to Norwich City.
Despite being level with Ipswich on 72 points, Middlesbrough have played two more games, meaning that if Ipswich wins their remaining matches, they could extend their lead by six points. Similarly, Millwall, now level on points with Middlesbrough, are still in contention for a top-three finish.
With just five matches left in the season, Hellberg emphasized the importance of winning all remaining games to stay in the race. “We probably have to win all five of our remaining games to get past them,” he said. “It’s very difficult to get those wins, but we will try and get as many points as possible and then we will see where we end up.”
Here’s a look at the final fixtures for Middlesbrough and their promotion rivals:
Ipswich Town’s Next Fixtures (2nd, 72 points)
- Norwich City (A), Saturday, April 11 (12:30pm).
- Portsmouth (A) – Tuesday, April 14 (8pm).
- Middlesbrough (H) – Sunday, April 19 (12pm).
- Charlton Athletic (A) – Wednesday, April 22 (7:45pm).
- West Bromwich Albion (A) – Saturday, April 25 (12:30pm).
- Southampton (A) – Tuesday, April 28 (7:45pm).
- Queens Park Rangers (H) – Saturday, May 2 (12:30pm).
Middlesbrough’s Next Fixtures (3rd, 72 points)
- Portsmouth (H) – Saturday, April 11 (3pm).
- Ipswich Town (A) – Sunday, April 19 (12pm).
- Sheffield Wednesday (H) – Wednesday, April 22 (7:45pm).
- Watford (H) – Saturday, April 25 (12:30pm).
- Wrexham (A) – Saturday, May 2 (12:30pm).
Millwall’s Next Fixtures (4th, 72 points)
- West Brom (A) – Friday, April 10 (8pm).
- QPR (H) – Saturday, April 18 (12:30pm).
- Stoke City (A) – Tuesday, April 21 (7:45pm).
- Leicester City (A) – Friday, April 24 (8pm).
- Oxford United (H) – Saturday, May 2 (12:30pm).
At the top of the table, leaders Coventry City have a chance to secure promotion on Saturday when they host Sheffield Wednesday. They were recently held to a 0-0 draw at Hull City, but their position remains strong.
