On Monday night Middlesbrough suffered a 3-0 defeat at Premier League champions-elect Chelsea, suffering relegation to the Championship in the process. Boro’s main problem this season has been the fact that they have struggled to score goals in the top-flight.
However, the warning signs were there for the north east side last season, despite their promotion to the top-flight. No Boro player managed to get into double-figures for the season and it was their defensive record that saw Aitor Karanka’s side promoted.
The Spaniard attempted to solve his team’s problems by signing former Manchester City striker Alvaro Negredo in the summer. The Spaniard has scored just nine Premier League goals, while January signings Rudy Gestede and Patrick Bamford have just one goal between them.
The fact that Gestede and Negredo are the only attacking players to contribute to Boro’s goal tally this season has not helped the north east side’s cause. It has led to Boro having scored the least goals in the Premier League, just 26 in their 36 top-flight games.
Even bottom of the table Sunderland have managed to score more league goals. The Boro hierarchy attempted to put things right with the exit of the pragmatic Karanka and the temporary appointment of the Spaniard’s assistant Steve Agnew.
The change has had little effect on the north east side’s goalscoring record, as they have failed to score in nine of their last 13 Premier League outings.
Ironically Boro could be relegated as the team that has conceded the fewest goals in the history of the Premier League. However, while their team is built on solid defensive foundations it is at the expense of any sort of attacking threat.
In the end, Boro have paid the price for the pragmatic approach of Karanka and the lack of goal threat this season.