Cheer Up It's The FA Cup
Saturday's result in the FA Cup maybe a turning point for Middlesbrough's poor season so far. All Boro fans will surely be a little excited of a possible lengthy cup run this year after a good away win against a tough Bristol City side who are currently level on points with West Brom and Watford at the top of the Championship.
League Two side Mansfield Town are Boro's next opponents in the 4th round of the FA Cup. Southgate knows his side will have to put in a gritty and professional performance if they are to overcome this lowly League Two team, which potentially could be a banana skin.
I was certainly happy to see Boro drawn against Mansfield and almost straight away I looked at Boro's possible opponents in the 5th round thinking we might have a good run ahead of us. Also with the amount of Premiere league sides which were ditched out of the competition by lower league opponents it is worth thinking we might just sneak into the quarter-finals or even a trip to Villa Park or Old Trafford in the semis. I'm not thinking of getting to the final or even winning the cup because the likes of Utd, Arsenal and Chelsea are still in the competition and these big boys have had a big hunger for this cup in the last 10 years and I think they are set to continue this trend.
So where does the season go from here for Southgate and his young troops? The answer may well be given to us in the next few weeks. The transfer window is now open and Middlesbrough officials and representatives are busy trying to lure a striker to the club. A few names have been mentioned over the past week including; Alfonso Alves of Heerenveen and Lyon striker Fred. A striker is needed at the club and lot of money may need to be spent to get a good goal scorer. A new signing at this stage of the season may be an advantage in two ways. Obviously we need to score more goals but with the introduction of another exciting Brazilian on Teesside it will encourage Boro fans to fill up the Riverside and create that atmosphere that was there when Juninho and Emerson were around.
The Boro fans will also hopefully be welcoming back Mido after a lengthy spell on the treatment table. This could be like having a new signing as well because Boro fans have only seen him in a handful of games. Let's hope he and the potential new signings are up for the tricky and tough road ahead as Boro look to break away from the drop zone to safety in the league and to do well in the FA Cup. No mention of qualifying for Europe though, surely not.
Up The Boro
Stuart Young
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