HarryfromBath assesses the mood in the opposition camp ahead of Saturday’s game by delving into their forums.

"Although Tony Mowbray has made a lot of mistakes in the second half of last season, I have never doubted his long term plan for the club."

"I think that the team is recovering from the psychological blow of last season. At this point, we are looking better and more solid."

"We look like a team, and I can’t remember the last time I said that." "The team is starting to emerge at last as one that Tony Mowbray has always wanted to build here." "The system of controlling games and creating chances is working."

After enduring a difficult second half to last season, Boro fans are much more upbeat these days. Their only frustration is that their dominance of recent games has not been reflected in their results.

"It’s just the end product that needs improving and then the results will start coming." "We had 16 shots to Sheffield Wednesday’s four (in their 1-1 home draw last Saturday week). How much more attacking can we be?" "This is some of the best football I have seen Boro play for a long time. How they did not score three or four is beyond me."

"This season has not given us the rewards points-wise that we deserve so far. I genuinely believe that the balance of the squad will bring the results we crave for our club."

"We are more of a unit now. We have come from a goal down three times already this season. If we can score first, we will start picking up some wins."

Tony Mowbray

"Tony Mowbray has now managed to build a squad of players that is potentially the best we have had in the last five years." "I genuinely have every faith in Mowbray to do well for us. We look decent this season."

"Mowbray likes to control games." "Having three central midfielders on the park is the best way to play possession football."

Middlesbrough have been operating a 4-3-3 system, built on retaining possession, with three narrow midfielders and two widemen supporting a lone striker.

This system has come unstuck when Lukas Jutkiewicz (Juke), their striker, has not been sufficiently supported by breaking midfielders and has become isolated: "We have no penetration through the middle with three defensively-minded midfielders."

"We have the right to moan when we are the home side and play with one up top. It seems so negative against teams that are there for the taking. I’ll back them, but Mowbray’s decisions are baffling at times." "There is not enough attacking intent at home."

Two Deadline Day Arrivals

"The transfer window seems to be the only place where Mowbray excels. He did a good job again." "Mowbray’s master plan is to sign players who are good enough to play every week and who are good for the dressing room. Let’s hope it’s true."

Kei Kamara

The mood among fans has been buoyed with the deadline day signings of winger-cum-striker Kei Kamara from Kansas City and attacking midfielder Jacob Butterfield, who participated in the Budgies campaign last season.

"The way Mowbray talks about Kamara, it seems that he is competing for a place on the wing, and will only revert to a striker’s role if we go direct." "Kamara is very strong in the air." "He has a fabulous work ethic, and boy can he jump!"

"Let’s hope we can get a few hundred crosses into the box. Kamara’s sure to get on the end of them." "I watched him against Everton (participating on loan for Norwich last season). He had a lot of clumsy touches, but was a threat going forwards. Very happy with what I saw."

"We all know that Butterfield is a class act, whereas Kamara is somewhat unproven." "Jacob will be our main midfielder, with the others rotating." There is an expectation that Boro will play more of a 4-2-3-1 system with Butterfield replacing one of the midfielders in a playmaker’s role.

"Is Butterfield the man to spot and play the killer ball? There is only one way to find out." "Jacob’s not going to win headers or go crunching into tackles, but he wins a lot more tussles that he is credited for."

"He definitely favours his mighty left foot for shooting, but his long range passing is usually on the right foot."

"Butterfield is going to be an integral part of our season this year. Hopefully he will get the central attacking midfield role, and can rack up the assists."

"He is a terrific counter attacking player, whose pace and power allows him to break from deep and arrive late in the box."

"He has great agility and mobility, and can find space in close quarters. At times, his play will look too safe and he’ll go square or backwards. He’s been brought up to retain the ball at all costs." "Hopefully with Jacob here, Juke can focus on staying in and around the box."

Defence

"We need height in our defence. It’s not a mystery why we concede from set-pieces. We have had months to sort it out, but have left it too late." "Another goal conceded from a corner." "Set piece once again."

Jason Steele

Fans are happy with their defence, but this is one area where they regularly come unstuck. Goalkeeper Jason Steele is "always switched on. He keeps good control of the ball has good distribution."

The 23-year-old youth product is "decent under the high ball, and had to be as Wednesday threw high ball in after high ball."

There was one cautionary comment: "I sometimes worry about his positioning for set-pieces as he appears to get stuck behind opposition players a lot."

Trinidad and Tobago international Justin Hoyte played at right-back for the injured Frazer Richardson against Wednesday. "He’s seriously lacking fitness. He liked up well with Adomah but ran out of gas on numerous occasions."

George Friend "had the Wednesday right-back chasing shadows, but his finishing was poor and his shots off target."

The 25-year-old former Doncaster left-back "was amazing. He must have run more than the whole Wednesday team combined." "He was up and down the wing like a machine." "He is a good marauding performer."

"Friend can get dispossessed trying to dribble out of defence." "He was greedy today, and should have squared the ball to Juke for a tap-in." "He had better options for passing. Same old problem." "He has a taste for goal, but that doesn’t mean swinging your boot at the slightest chance."

Jonathan Woodgate

"Jonathan Woodgate is forming a good relationship with Rhys Williams." The 33-year-old England international "controls the game well, wins headers and provides calmness at the back."

"He still holds that injury worry. In a one-on-one, it looks like he has to push himself to reach full speed and he could pull up at any time."

"Williams looks more of a leader this year than he did last season." Australian international Rhys Williams is "solid and dependable." "He is looking more like a quality centre-back who is always capable of bringing the ball out of defence." "He was outmuscled a few times against Wednesday, but read every through ball they played."

Central Midfield

"I have been impressed by Whitehead so far. He doesn’t have a glamorous role in the team. He is essential in breaking down attacks and distributing the ball to our more creative players." "The positions he picks up are defensively excellent." "He never looks rushed and has a great positional sense."

Former Stoke player Dean Whitehead "protects the centre-backs brilliantly by running in front of them." "His passing has been sloppy and he’s made a couple of dangerous mistakes, but he’s settling into our style of play."

Dean Whitehead and Grant Leadbitter

However, the 31-year-old "struggles to go beyond 60 to 70 minutes without getting seriously fatigued."

Hungarian International Jozsef Varga was signed on loan from Debrecen this summer, and "needs time to grow into the intensity of the English game". "He dawdles in possession and rarely chooses the correct pass." "He doesn’t do much with the ball, but is hard working off it."

"Mowbray said that he will come into his own when the pitches start getting heavier in the winter. He’ll be able to cover more ground than others."

"He’s busy, vocal and not afraid of throwing his weight around. On the flip side, he’s a bit slow in the head, struggles on the ball under pressure and is a bit lightweight on account of his size."

Grant Leadbitter

"What does Grant Leadbitter bring to the team?" An 18-page thread on the OneBoro forum left no stone unturned discussing the former Ipswich midfielder and third member of the midfield triumvirate.

Grant Leadbitter

"He brings lots of debate, arguments, disagreement and especially thread derailments on Boro message boards." "I don’t think there’s another player in our side that causes so much debate."

"He has good ball retention." "He is a consistent player, and ideal for a team who play possession football." "He retains the ball too much and likes to have too many touches before releasing it." He is "the master of the midfield pirouette".

"You cannot fault his desire, but I’d like to see him show more urgency at the right time instead of playing football at snail’s pace." "There’s no zip in him." "I cannot fathom why he dwells on the ball. With his technical ability, he should be able to work a lot faster." "He’s too slow in releasing the ball forward."

"His choice of pass wastes possession rather than loses it. He will make the safe ten-yard pass on a break, rather than the 40-yard pass ahead of the guy running in to space." "He also can’t tackle. He just throws himself in. More often than not it is mistimed and dangerous giving freekicks away."

"He is very consistent, but doesn’t do anything special. He moves the ball and tracks back with no frills. The problem with this is that he is not the midfielder protecting the back four. He isn’t shackled, and should be doing more further up the pitch." His conservatism is seen by many as part of the reason Jutkiewicz is so isolated up front.

"He covers huge amounts of work in creating space closing gaps. He offers himself for passes when others hide. He pulls the team together in many respects." "Like the bass guitar in a band, take him away and you know something is missing." "He’s an all-rounder — the glue that holds the side together."

There is one area supporters are agreed on. "I cannot defend his set-pieces." "They can be awful. It’s frustrating when he passes a freekick from the opponents’ half back to the keeper." And yet, "the thing with Leadbitter is that when he does deliver a good cross, it’s a really good ball, but it just doesn’t happen enough."

Wide Midfield

"We have always lacked pace to our attacks and never seemed to break and make a chance. With Muzzy and Adomah, we can do that. This is essential to pick up points in this league."

"If we can get Bert and Muzzy running on to balls played in behind rather than having to run with the ball from the halfway line, then good times are coming."

Albert Adomah

Summer signing Albert Adomah is "pacey, direct, and has a wicked delivery." "He did some dangerous things with the ball and exploited space when Wednesday committed men forward." The 25-year-old winger joined from Bristol City this summer. "He looks a constant threat down the right and played a few good balls in."

"He seemed to disappear when he changes wings." Against Wednesday, he swapped flanks when left winger Mustapha Carayol was substituted. "There’s more to come from him. He could be our most creative outlet." "He needs to turn the effort into goals more. I’d like to see him drive into the box."

Carayol, who joined from Bristol Rovers in 2012, scored the equaliser against Sheffield Wednesday. "He is not as effective as Adomah, but got in a good position for his goal and did well making space for Friend by dragging his man inside." "His first touch was poor when he drifted into the middle, but he got down the wing well."

Strikers

"We play brightly but don’t look sharp up front." "We create so many chances but we can’t ever finish them. This is why we’re in dire need of a clinical striker or these missed chances will come back to haunt us." "We are very wasteful when we do create, and until this is sorted I suspect we will have many draws."

"Juke has to beat two centre-backs and a keeper every time. Surely Mowbray can see he has an impossible task?" "Juke needs help. We say it every time, but he does. It’s that simple." The former Coventry striker "works tirelessly and takes huge punishment from defenders."

Lukas Jutkiewicz

One fan spotted a problem undermining the striker’s heroic work rate. "Juke needs to pass the ball more often. Time and time again he’d try and do everything himself even in positions where he could pose no threat. He does the hard work and wastes it by not taking the easy option."

Marvin Emnes has "a quality touch and control, but needs to be mentally stronger and believe he can hurt teams by getting forward more." The 25-year-old Dutch player has "the best natural technique in the squad" and has come on from the bench in each of the last three games.

Boro Fans’ Views on ITFC and the Game

It is early days, but their forecast poll has 74% favouring a Boro win, 16% predicting an Ipswich win and 10% anticipating the draw. This accurately reflects the upbeat mood after their transfer day signings, especially that of Butterfield.

"5-0, Kamara to score them all." "You’re forgetting the Butterfield hat-trick." "It would be good for Leadbitter to one and at least one from our Norwich contingent, just for the locals!"

"I've gone for a mighty Boro win. I'm feeling a 4-1 or 3-0 victory with morale having been boosted by new signings and fewer conflicting personalities. I'd like to see us play as a cohesive unit, playing fast and effective attacking football."

"I picked Kamara over Carayol because I feel Carayol has been poor in our first few games." This is a popular selection, as is the replacement of Varga with the attacking Butterfield in the centre of midfield. "Ipswich look quite poor this season. This represents a really great chance to pick up another away win."

Their small number of pessimists are more pragmatic. "I will be happy with a point at Ipswich following last season’s mauling." "Ipswich are a bogey team for us." "Ipswich will be hard away. They have improved since last year."

I will update the forum with their more specific thoughts on Saturday morning.

Websites

The best website by far is OneBoro

Photo: Action Images

Michael11 added 12:07 - Sep 13 These Boro fans are deluded aren't they?! They'd take a point from us tomorrow if offered it!
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irishtim added 12:14 - Sep 13 Cocky lot. Well done Harry.
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TimmyH added 12:55 - Sep 13 Time to mash Boro' - nothing less than 3 points will suffice.
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Surco72 added 12:58 - Sep 13 Personally speaking I don't think the boro fans are deluded , i think they have a better squad than us and are playing a better system for this division ,they will be hard to breakdown and will counter attack with pace and power . Would be happy for a point from this game and three against Yeovil as Boro will be playoffs at the end of the season
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WeirdFishes added 13:13 - Sep 13 What a bunch of cocky mugs.
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brian_a_mul added 13:17 - Sep 13 Boro are weak on set pieces, so I think we can do some serious damage here. This could play in to our hands. With Boro playing one up front with two wide we need to be alert at full back. I'm leaning towards Chambers at RB for his defensive abilities with Berra/Smith at CB for their threat at set pieces. Both have been among the goals already and will fancy attacking corners and free kicks. 2-0 for Town. McGoldrick and Smith.

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StowTractorBoy added 13:48 - Sep 13 Reading this some fans think they are world beaters - I think not. I do accept however they have made some excellent signings and will be no pushover. Worried about our scoring ability and its time for Murphy or Nouble to step uo to the plate otherwise we could struggle.
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Garv added 15:01 - Sep 13 Section on Leadbitter sums him up perfectly. Neither defensive or attacking.
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algarvefan added 16:29 - Sep 13 Harry thank you for your insights into the opponents each week, they set up my mind for matchdays perfectly mate, keep them coming, you're one of the best things on this site!
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RegencyBlue added 18:40 - Sep 13 My best mate is a Boro fan. If we don't win another game this season we have to beat Boro or else my life will be hell!
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RegencyBlue added 18:41 - Sep 13 Forgot to say another excellent job Harry!
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HarryfromBath added 19:28 - Sep 13 I think that Boro, like us, will steadily improve as the season progresses and as their signings bed in. Mowbray is building a decent team and they should be in the top half if they avoid too many injuries. Having said this, I really do think that their fans over-confidence for tomorrow is greatly misplaced. Their new signings will not click from day one. I think that they are judging us on our results and not on our wider performances. We will need to do a number on Butterfield if he starts, and Skuse should do this, passing him on to a centre back if he gets too advanced. I really believe that if we play as well as we did at Birmingham, Boro will have a very tough afternoon. As StowTractorBoy has said, we really need both strikers to be sharp to be giving them difficulties. McGoldrick was excellent last Saturday week, but he really needs an accomplice. Garv, it was enjoyable working through the Leadbitter thread, and took me back to TWTD a few seasons ago. I really struggled to understand him when he played for us, and their insights were very illuminating. Thanks once again everyone for adding your comments. They are hugely helpful.

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