Michael Carrick has to try and lift his Middlesbrough players for the final game against Coventry City.
Michael Carrick promised to lift his Middlesbrough players and ensure they head into a vital final-day showdown with Coventry City in as positive a mood as they can be.
A draw with Norwich City in their final home game means that Boro’s play-off fate is no longer in their own hands on the final day. They simply have to beat top-six rivals Coventry at the CBS Arena, but will also be relying on two of Bristol City, Millwall and Blackburn to lose, assuming Bristol City also lose at Leeds United on Monday evening.
The draw against Norwich was another frustrating performance from Boro, which served as another missed opportunity after Coventry’s earlier loss at Luton Town. It means Boro head into their all-or-nothing clash with the Sky Blues on the back of just one victory in their last five games.
While clearly dejected after the poor performance, Carrick did promise: “We’ll be lifted, don’t worry about that. It’s natural to feel disappointed today but there’s still a lot at stake. The season isn’t done by any stretch and there’s still a lot at stake. It’s a one-off game and we’re in the situation where we need to win the game. We’ll go about it in a way that we think will give us the best chance of doing that.
“It’s one game. It’s one final now. The slate has to wipe clean and it’s just all focus on this one-off game. Nothing else really matters. With the emotion of the stadium, everything that’s at stake, everything else goes out of the window, to be honest. We just happen to be playing each other, while there are other teams in it as well now. We just have to do as much as we can do and that’s all we can do now.”
As underwhelming as Boro have been for much of this season, they do still have what looks a good chance on the final day, IF they can beat Coventry. That’s a big if, given their recent record against the Sky Blues. But if they do win at the CBS Arena on Saturday, they enjoy a superior goal difference over all of their top-six rivals, of which two more will have to also lose.
Bristol City host Preston North End, who have found themselves dragged into a relegation battle. Millwall are away at Burnley who, despite sealing promotion, won 5-0 on Saturday as they fight for the league title. Blackburn travel to Sheffield United, who beat Stoke 2-0 on Friday as Chris Wilder guides his team through the disappointment of missing out on automatic promotion and targeting a club-record points tally.
“Last day of the season can do all sorts of different things,” Carrick continued, assessing Boro’s chances. “Anything can happen and it is still possible. We can’t go there expecting nothing to happen. We have to go there still believing it can. At the very least, we go there to win the game and then we just have to hope that it proves enough on the day.
“If we do win the game, who knows? We’ve got to be positive going into next week. It’s tough right now because we’re all disappointed, but by the time the game comes around and in training this week, we’ll prepare right for it.
“We’ve got to understand that on the last day of the season, and I’ve been part of them myself, things do happen. We’ve got to win it to give ourselves the best chance. In the end, you’re either good enough to get there or you’re not. Next week, we’ll see where we’re at.”
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