Blackburn v Middlesbrough: More away-day misery in store for Boro
Published:Tony Mowbray’s Middlesbrough side head to Blackburn needing a win to get their promotion push back on track.
Boro are massive underdogs at 7/2 to win at Ewood Park, something they haven’t managed since the 2004/05 season, when Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink fired a hat-trick in a 4-0 rout.
Current form suggests it would take some kind of miracle for the visitors to produce a similar performance here, with Boro losing all three of their Championship games on the road to date.
Blackburn – 4/5 favourites – head up the table after six games and nothing else would suffice for the perennially-despised Steve Kean as he bids to keep the Rovers faithful off his back.
He’ll be grateful for the start summer signing Jordan Rhodes has made. The Scottish international has notched three goals from as many games since his move to Lancashire and doesn’t look like letting his enormous transfer fee hamper his on-pitch performances.
He’s 7/2 to be the first goalscorer in this one and his side are difficult to look past for the victory.
Boro’s best bet in the goalscorering stakes comes from Lukas Jutkiewicz who will be in line for a start following his return from knee surgery. The former Coventry marksman is a healthy 8/1 to break the deadlock under the Ewood floodlights and looked lively in two substitute appearances prior to this.
Blackburn have failed to keep a clean sheet in all but one of their games this season, whereas the Boro have failed to score in all but one of theirs. This justifies a price as short of 8/13 for both teams to be on target, but it is still worth considering.
A Boro goal in the 15 minutes before the break is a good bet at 7/2 given that the 2004 League Cup winners have notched in this period in the five Championship matches where they have beaten the opposition’s goalkeeper.
All odds and markets correct as of publication
