‘Right in there’ - Middlesbrough boss wary of ‘well-coached’ Sheffield Wednesday

The Owls took themselves level with Huddersfield Town and Birmingham City on Friday as they continued to claw back what at one point looked like an unassailable deficit, and they head to the Riverside knowing that a victory could finally get them out of the bottom three.

In their way, however, is a Boro side that are now unbeaten in five games, but Carrick is aware of the threat that Wednesday could post this afternoon.

“They have certainly had a good run of results,” he said before their 1-1 draw with Soutampton. “They had a tough day at Ipswich but have everything to play for and are right in the thick of it. They've put themselves right in there. Credit to them for that. They're really well-coached and difficult to play against. I have eyes on that and the coaches have but the players haven't yet, they're all eyes on Friday. We'll get the right balance moving into Monday after that.”

It's a busy period for everyone, but the Boro boss isn’t getting bogged down in the schedule after their long trip down to St. Mary’s – and he’s looking for his side to build on their solid form.

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“We’ll have to recover well and see who’s available to be ready for that one,” Carrick said. “Friday to Monday is normal and it's no big deal. We're used to playing Saturday-Tuesday which is the same. It doesn't make any difference to us in terms of preparation for games or recovery. Having two games over this period can set the tone.

“We've had four games (before the break) quite quickly where we've had good results and it's been positive and it's something we'll definitely try to build on.”