Despite a(nother) meek defeat at Wembley in May, Middlesbrough have clearly moved in the right direction since QPR’s most recent two visits.

Overview

Hull Kingston Rovers' embarrassing 50-0 loss in rugby league's Challenge Cup final against Leeds last season may have been humiliating, but it still didn't ruin their main (only) trump card over their bitter cross city rivals Hull FC. "You'll never win at Wembley" the Robins sing, relentlessly, and so far they're right — Hull FC have been around for 150 years and never managed it.

The Black and Whites have won the Challenge Cup more than Rovers — three occasions - but always at an alternative venue: via a replay played at Elland Road, for instance, or in Cardiff during the national stadium's redevelopment.

Bobby Zamora's goal for QPR in the last minute of their play-off final against Derby gave the R's a second ever win at Wembley following the 1967 League Cup triumph. That felt rare enough, but for some clubs, a win at Wembley remains an elusive dream despite the play-offs giving that added opportunity for smaller clubs to get there each year.

Middlesbrough, like Hull FC, have won a major domestic trophy recently but they too found their League Cup final taking place at the Millennium Stadium in 2004. They've been to Wembley on five occasions and failed to win, mostly losing 2-0 to Chelsea. They lost to the Racists in the Zenith Data System Cup in 1990, and then again in the 1997 FA Cup final. Leicester beat them in a League Cup final replay at Hillsborough that same year after the first game finished as a draw before penalty shoot outs were used. Then Chelsea did them 2-0 yet again in the League Cup final a year later.

They rather choked on a chance to set that right in the Championship play-off final back in May. Having looked a decent bet for automatic promotion for much of the season, and with the league's Player of the Season up front — floppy-haired piano-playing public-schoolboy Patrick Bamford - they fell behind early to Norwich, who'd come up on the rails since appointing Alex Neill as manager halfway through the season, and never recovered.

Recovering losing positions had been an issue for Boro for most of the season and, despite beating Norwich at Carrow Road a couple of weeks prior to the end of the normal season, it proved to be so again. Another 2-0 loss in a final.

There is, nevertheless, a feeling that the good times may be returning to the Riverside Stadium after a prolonged period in the doldrums since relegation back in 2009.

Having suffered a talent drain over several seasons following their near miss in the UEFA Cup Final under Steve McClaren a number of expensive signings — Alfonso Alves, you all know the joke by now — didn't work out for rookie boss Gareth Southgate. The path trodden since then may start to ring horribly familiar for QPR fans when I say that initial hopes the team was good enough to bounce straight back were quickly dashed and Southgate was dismissed as manager in October the following season.

Gordon Strachan's decision to spend the remaining parachute money bringing players south of the border from the SPL, notably lumbering forward Kris Boyd, saw the team take a predictable downward turn — Strachan, to his credit, held his hands up to the failure and refused the pay-off he was owed in his contract when dismissed. By the time club legend Tony Mowbray had tried and failed to revive the patient Boro were playing in front of a largely empty stadium, with no parachute money, and apparently closer to a League One campaign than a Premier League one.

But Steve Gibson always has been one of the Football League's most astute and benevolent chairmen and his decision to bring in Aitor Karanka, a former coach at Real Madrid, as manager has proved something of a turning point. The early signs weren’t good — recommendations from Peter Kenyon and a history with Jose Mourinho sounds like the sort of reference QPR take for a three-year contract. However, Middlesbrough are starting to look like they did the last time they went into the top flight for a prolonged stay.

Spending in excess of £5m to bring Stewart Downing back home from West Ham was a nice story, spending £4m David Nugent now he’s the wrong side of 30 perhaps a little extravagant, but Karanka’s team is already fitting together nicely, despite losing Bamford in the summer.

It feels like the club is back on the upward curve again. Crowds are significantly up — 12,000 went to a recent cup game at Old Trafford — despite economic hardship in the area and the improvement of the team, the club, and the atmosphere at home matches seems to be something of a symbol of defiance while the Redcar steel works and its employees fall victim to the “northern power house”.

Difficult club, team, manager and chairman to dislike.

Scout Report

LFW’s man in Spain, Miguel Ortiz, offers us the following on Boro’s Spanish legion…

Aitor Karanka is a former central defender who played for Athletic Bilbao and Real Madrid and was capped by Spain. There was a time when Ath Bilbao defenders were fierce and tough, some even violent, and they were proud to have these kind of players — Andoni Goikoetxea broke Bernd Schuster’s knee one season and the ankle of Maradona the next. Obviously not well loved at Barcelona, he was nicknamed the butcher.

Then suddenly Bilbao start to produce fine central defenders who could play the ball, without losing the aggression which made them difficult to beat. Aitor Karanka was the first of that new breed. Karanka was a fine central defender, a ball player who rarely kicked anybody and ended up winning three European Cups.

After his retirement he went on to be second in command to Mourinho at Real Madrid and earned the nickname as the voice of his master because he did the press conferences repeating Mourinho's messages. After Mourinho’s acrimonious departure he joined the biggest company in the country - the dole - before ending up at Middlesbrough which is the worst nightmare for lazy Spanish journalists who can't pronounce the name properly. If only they knew that saying ‘Boro’ is safe…

As a coach, he’s contrary to the tradition in this country where ex-defenders often make their teams play attack. He has opted for a cautious approach.

Tomas Mejias A goalkeeper, loaned to Middlesbrough last season and signed this summer, mainly used so far this season in the League Cup.

He grew up through the Real Madrid youth teams. Contrary to the global perception that FC Barcelona is the best youth structure in Spain, it is actually La Fabrica (the factory) of Real Madrid which produces a line of fine footballers always ready to make the step to the professional football. They are particularly good at producing the best goalkeepers.

Traditionally Real Madrid goalkeepers were like cats and normal size, with the latest example being Iker Casillas. But since he broke into the first team, R Madrid has been producing tall commanding goal keepers - Diego Lopez (Milan), Covelo (Rayo Vallecano), Codina (Getafe), Kiko Casilla (back at Madrid from Espanyol), Adan (Real Betis), Jesus Fernandez (UD Levante), Mejias (Boro), Andres (Espanyol B) are all tall and/or commanding goalkeepers. No big hands from the reporters but no big mistakes. Mejias, let’s say, has the tendency of being injured.

You may have noticed, Espanyol takes a lot of these keepers on loan or for a little fee and develops them. In Thomas N'Knono, Espanyol has the finest goalkeeping coach and all his disciples have become full capped for their countries. But, overall, in recent years in Spain, coaches are working very well with kids and teams increasingly have Spanish goalkeepers whereas South American, particularly Argentinean, keepers used to be dominant.

Damia Abella: Boro couldn’t find an English full back better than him? Apart from the fact he's physically broken, the 33-year-old was another hyped up product of La Masia, the FC Barcelona youth teams. A winger in the beginning, he ended up playing what we call ‘carrilero’, a player that can take the whole line and you do not need a winger nor a full back. Played, and broke his hip, knee and plenty else besides, for Racing Santander, Real Betis and Club Atletico Osasuna.

Daniel Ayala A product of the interesting Sevilla youth structure, which produces exquisite players from the south of Spain. In actual fact he has played all his career in England having been signed for Liverpool by Rafa Benitez along with other Spanish players for their youth structure in 2007. He is the only one not to return yet, after a spell with Norwich, but is still only in the second tier at 25. Currently performing very well for Boro.

Fernando Amorebieta A throwback to the violent Athletic Bilbao defenders of the past. Capped by Venezuela because he was born there and did not want to play for Spain due to his support for Basque country independency. Tall, left footed, tough, old style central defender. Overall, an excellent player but always prone to a moment of disconnection - mistakes, conceding goals, gifting the ball to the opposition or committing most horrible tackles.

Due to their political policy of only picking Basque players, Athletic Bilbao pays high wages. Amorebieta wanted more money and to play abroad and he thought that Fullham was a good place - that's Amorebieta’s brain. He ended up relegated and on loan at Boro.

Emilio Nsue: From the Mallorca youth teams but opted to play for a former colony - Equitorial Guinea. Plays as a what we call interio, and in Argentina volante - it's a midfielder dumped on one of the side of the midfield. He helps his defender and attack as a winger cutting inside. I like him - lively, technical, defends, dynamic, good team player.

Bruno Zucullini: An Argentinean on loan from Man City. A very interesting player, but I have my doubts that England is the best place for him to develop his game due the difference in style from the Argentinean game to the English game. He’s more suited for Spain. Argentinean football’s definition for this kind of playes is ‘armador’ - here we call them ‘six’. In English the best definition I can think of is a ball player, close to the holding midfield role. Ale Faurlin could be a mirror for him but he's less dynamic. As usual, with the last youth players from South America, he left his country too early with only a handful of games at top level. But that's another conversation.

Enirque (Kike) Garcia: From the Real Murcia youth teams. A target man, scored goals for fun at second division and Real Murcia had to sell him on the cheap due to their perennial financial problems. Never tested at the highest level but nevertheless a good player who does his job and scores goals.

Christian Stuani: Injured while on international duty with Uruguay, which is potentially lucky for QPR. Stuani, like a lot of South American players, came to Europe with only a handful of games at first level as experience and joined mighty Reggiana in Italy. He found things tough there and went on loan to Spain - Albacete in the Second Division - and had a terrific season and then two loans at Levante and Racing at top level, where he did his job as front man. Not the most gifted, but if he has to head a pig he will head a pig. Kick a defender? Off he goes, fighting like all Uruguayans and on his day he’s capable of scoring all that comes to him but, if not, prone to missing the most incredible sitters.

Then he came to Espanyol and when the team was very bad and Mauricio Pochettino had been sacked. Javier Aguirre’s appointment was a master stroke — he saw the goalkeeper could not kick straight or long, and often veered to the right channel. He put Stuani in the number eight channel so he could flick these wild kicks to the strikers. Where is Karanka putting him? In the same position. In a friendly at White Hart Lane he gave Spurs’ Danny Rose a torrid afternoon despite playing with a broken cheek bone.

Thart’s why his current injury is lucky for QPR — I can’t see Konchesky dealing with him.

I haven’t seen much of Carlos De la Peña (not related with the gifted Spanish ball player Ivan De la Peña) but he comes from Uruguay with the same problem - only a handful of games at top level before moving to the UK.

Links >>> Official Website >>> FMTTM site and forum >>> The Gazette local paper >>> One Boro blog >>> Northern Echo local paper >>> Middlesbrough Mad >>> Come on Boro forum

The Twitter @loftforwords

Pictures - Action Images

Photo: Action Images

TacticalR added 16:11 - Nov 20 Thanks for your oppo profile. It sounds like Middlesbrough suffer from big game nerves. Karanka has been there for two years which seems like a lifetime at QPR. I didn't realise he had built up such a large Latin contingent at the club. Btw, I am not sure I would describe the 4-0 defeat in the UEFA Cup Final as a 'near miss'.
0

Queens Park Rangers Polls