Middlesbrough condemned Coventry City to another defeat after twice scoring late on at the Riverside
Britt Assombalonga scored his first goal of the season and Djed Spence slotted past Coventry ‘keeper Marko Marosi in added time to give Boro all 3 points.
The low strike from Assombalonga heated up an otherwise dull game with little concrete chances from either team. But in the dying seconds Marosi overly committed to winning the ball and Spence calmy manoeuvred around the diving ‘keeper and slotted home.
A slow half greeted both teams in a stop start opening 30 minutes, however Middlesbrough kept testing the Coventry defence with Paddy McNair firing at Marosi from a tight angle. It was the resilience of the newly promoted side that held firm and kept the score all square. Pot shots from the Sky Blues didn’t trouble the Boro ‘keeper but served as a warning that they weren’t there to just take hits freely.
Coventry started the brighter after the restart and pushed for an early goal, but the Boro defence held firm. Middlesbrough launched several salvos which saw Sam Morsy hit the bar and Assombalonga head over. Coventry responded with Matt Godden creating a three on two but lacked a final ball.
Assombalonga broke the deadlock with his first goal for Middlesbrough this season. His first touch threading the needle past the Coventry back line and his second finding the goal. Spence wrapped up proceedings by rounding Marosi for Middlesbrough’s third win and Coventry’s fifth defeat this season.
Teams:
Middlesbrough: Bettinelli, Fry, Dijksteel, McNair, Spence, Tavernier (Coulson 67′), Morsy, Howson, Saville, Roberts (Browne 67′), Assombalonga (C) 3-1-4-2
(Subs not used: Stojanovic, Bola, Wood, Johnson, Wing)
Coventry: Marosi, McFadzean (C), Hyam, Ostigard, McCallum, Giles, Shipley (Walker 77′), Sheaf, Godden, Allen (O’Hare 77′), Harmer 3-4-2-1
(Subs not used: Wilson, Dabo, Thompson, Kelly, Biamou)
Goals: Assombalonga 80′, Spence 90+4′
Referee: David Webb
The Wandering Yorkshireman 