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Southgate Glad Of Break
By Betting Zone
October 9 2007
Middlesbrough boss Gareth Southgate will go back to the drawing board as he attempts to halt his injury-ravaged side's alarming slump. Southgate was forced to field 20-year-old Tom Craddock as a lone striker in his first Premier League start at Manchester City on Sunday with Mido, Jeremie Aliadiere and Dong-Gook Lee all injured and Tuncay Sanli only fit enough to be included on the bench.
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The Teessiders ended the game with 19-year-old Ben Hutchinson having taken over and scoring his first senior goal for the club in a comprehensive 3-1 defeat.

It was Boro's third successive defeat in all competitions and left them without a win in five games, a run which has seen them slip to 15th place in the table and only a point clear of the relegation zone.

Southgate's men do not play again until October 20, when they host Avram Grant's resurgent Chelsea side at the Riverside Stadium knowing they need to get their season back on track as soon as possible.

And with a trip to Manchester United to follow a week later, the manager knows the next fortnight will be crucial.

He said: "The last international break came at the worst possible time for us - this one is coming at the best time.

"It gives us time to get on the training ground. I am pretty certain they will all be fit for Chelsea.

"We will hopefully have competition for places in the striking positions for the next game.

"I have to pick a team that wins us the game against Chelsea now."

Boro went into the last international break on the back of a four-game unbeaten run which included league victories over Fulham and Birmingham and a hard-fought derby draw against Newcastle.

However, defeats by West Ham, Everton and Manchester City and in the Carling Cup, plus a 2-2 draw with Sunderland have seen their fortunes dwindle since.

Indeed, they have scored only three goals in their last five games and conceded 12, a statistic which underlines their problems.

Southgate said: "It is that ruthlessness in both penalty areas at the moment that we have not got.

"We can be as attractive to watch between there as you like, but that is where games are won and lost.

"At the moment, we are not doing it in either box."

Southgate chose to rest 20-year-old central defender David Wheater at Eastlands after previously playing him for every minute of the season to that point in the absence of the injured Emanuel Pogatetz.

Chris Riggott was drafted in alongside England international Jonathan Woodgate, and was unfortunate to set City on their way with an own goal.

However, Southgate insisted the time was right to give Wheater a break.

He said: "He has done really well for us, but he is a young player.

"There is a time to pull a player out and make sure his confidence is not affected.

"I thought a bit more experience would help us. I am very pleased with what he has done, but sometimes as a younger player, you need to have a look at things occasionally."

Southgate has had little choice but to blood some of his younger players this season, but he is determined not to over-extend them despite his major selection headache.

He was happy in particular with Craddock's performance at City, but told him from the start that he would not be playing the full 90 minutes.

He said: "I told him before the game I would only play him in that role for an hour because it is physically very demanding and we were asking him to cover a lot of ground.

"I think he will understand that."

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Southgate Glad Of Break
Posted by: ComeOnBoro (IP Logged)
Date: 09/10/2007 10:34

Southgate Glad Of Break

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