Middlesbrough Vs Leicester City — middlesbrough vs leicester city finishes 1-1

middlesbrough vs leicester city ended 1-1 at the Riverside Stadium as Caleb Okoli put Leicester ahead in the first half and Riley McGree levelled in first-half stoppage time for the hosts. Promotion hopefuls Middlesbrough had to settle for a point against relegation-threatened Leicester City after a game of clear chances and costly errors.

Middlesbrough Vs Leicester City: Match Summary

Caleb Okoli opened the scoring when he got in front of Boro defender Luke Ayling to head home Divine Mukasa's right-wing free-kick. Just before the interval Okoli gave the ball away in the build-up to the hosts' equaliser. Boro sprang forward and Hayden Hackney played the ball to the left to Tommy Conway, who pulled it back for Riley McGree to tuck away his third goal in his past four matches, levelling in first-half stoppage time.

First-half goals and mistakes

Okoli's shock lead for the visitors came after 20 minutes when the centre back headed home, but the same defender's error minutes before half allowed Middlesbrough to respond. The match report elsewhere noted: "That's now 28 games without a clean sheet. " The subject of that sentence is unclear in the provided context.

Chances, saves and missed headers

Early in the second half Ayling's botched attempt to head away a long ball left Patson Daka one-on-one with keeper Sol Brynn, but the striker headed wide. Leicester continued to threaten and Abdul Fatawu sent an effort narrowly wide of the far post. At the other end Callum Brittain's cross was nudged narrowly wide by David Strelec, Conway fired well over, and veteran keeper Asmir Begovic saved with his legs to deny McGree.

Three Foxes talking points

An analysis of the game highlighted that a failure to beat Stoke on Saturday may have loomed over the visitors, as few expected a positive result against a Middlesbrough side competing for automatic promotion. Going into the game Boro had won ten of their 16 home games at the Riverside this season, losing only two; by contrast, of their 17 away matches City have won only four. The draw was described as hugely creditable for Leicester despite long odds against them.

Squad changes, injuries and substitutes

Bobby De Cordova-Reid was back after a three-match suspension, replacing Jeremy Monga in one of two changes from the side that took the field at the bet 365 Stadium. Abdul Fatawu was fit enough to take a place on the bench. The midfield pivot of Oliver Skipp and Harry Winks were singled out for supporting the defence well and moving forward quickly, while Divine Makasa was described as, again, excellent, adding another assist to his total.

Table implications and recent form

Boro have now gone three Championship matches without a win, having previously won six in a row. A victory would have put second-placed Boro level on points with leaders Coventry City, who will go five points clear of them if they beat Sheffield United on Wednesday evening. After a recent defeat by Coventry saw the Sky Blues regain top spot from Boro, Kim Hellberg's side have dropped points against two teams battling against the drop, having played out a frustrating goalless draw against Oxford United at the weekend. They are six points clear of third-placed Ipswich and Hull in fourth, and will be keen to get back to winning ways in their next match, away to Birmingham on Monday.

Leicester reaction and outlook

Leicester have drawn both their matches under new boss Gary Rowett, and the manager will be encouraged by the spirited performance. Leicester remain third from bottom and are without a win in eight league matches, but they are just a point behind West Bromwich Albion, the team immediately above them in the table. The Foxes did not look like a relegation-threatened side in the match, and observers noted Rowett has made a strong start despite the club's precarious position. Blackurn and Portsmouth's defeat and West Brom's draw were said to help the mood among the Blue Army.

Other notes and availability

An EFL highlights blog linked to the round was unavailable on one platform at the time of these match reports, displaying the message: "Sorry, this blog is currently unavailable. Please try again later. "

Middlesbrough boss Kim Hellberg said: "It makes it one loss in the last nine, but of course you want to win games. We weren't good enough to win today. From the last two games we created a lot of opportunities but for us now the ball is not going into the net to win it. "

One piece of analysis, published under the headline Middlesbrough vs Leicester: Three Foxes Talking Points, argued that Leicester's willingness to press forward rather than sit deep had been notable in recent matches and that maintaining that approach could be important. The assessment also noted past examples, including a recent second half against Southampton when, three-nil up, City sat deep and tried unsuccessfully to protect their lead.

Leicester are at home to Norwich on Saturday; Middlesbrough will look to respond away to Birmingham on Monday.