Michael Carrick feels his Middlesbrough side are peaking at the ideal time after their 2-0 win over Sheffield Wednesday took them to within six points of the Championship’s play-off places.
The Teessiders’ season looked to effectively be over when they dropped to 14th after last month’s 2-0 defeat at Stoke, but they have embarked on a six-game unbeaten run that has reignited their promotion hopes.
They have closed to within six points of sixth-placed Norwich thanks to a comfortable victory over the Owls, which was achieved through a Michael Ihiekwe own goal and a deflected second-half strike from Isaiah Jones.
Carrick said: “There comes a point towards the end of the season where we are where we are, and you understand that and grasp it. You can then try to use that as a motivation.
“Five or six games ago, it was a case of getting back to basics and being solid and hard to beat. It was about trying to win games again, and we’ve done that.
“Southampton (a 1-1 draw on Good Friday) was a move in the right direction in terms of the football we want to play, and then today we’ve added to that again.
“I thought we looked a lot like the team we want to look like today, and I was pleased with that.
“Of course, we’ve got to keep trying to win games and see where that takes us, but the end of the season is getting closer now and while there’ll be swings week to week, I think you’ve got to embrace that at this stage.”
Carrick was especially pleased with his side’s defensive display despite the absence of a host of senior players that resulted in Jonny Howson having to play centre-back for the second game in a row.
Boro have conceded just one goal in their last five matches, with their improved defensive performances having played a major role in their unbeaten run.
Carrick said: “I think we’ve defended well as a team and pressed well. Different scenarios, different little tweaks of personnel, but I keep talking about the wavelengths and connections.
“Jonny has just shown his experience and his class. He’s stepped in and understood it straight away.
“I know he’s played there a few times, but I think he’s quite enjoyed that bit of a fresh challenge. You could see that, and I thought he was terrific again.”
Sheffield Wednesday boss Danny Rohl pulled no punches as he bemoaned his side’s lacklustre showing as they slipped to 23rd in the table with just six more games to play.
“The supporters are high level, Premier League level, but from us, there was nothing,” Rohl said.
“I have showed my players one clip immediately after the game, and that clip showed everything that was wrong. If you lose the ball, then you have to work. If you play forward, then you have to push out. If the opponent moves right, you have to move right, but we were not moving right.
“We can speak about the shape, the players, everything, but it was simply not good enough. It was a big, big disappointment.
“If you are not doing the basics right, that is really disappointing.
“If you do not have the right attitude, it will be hard, and if the attitude is not right, it will be hard to take anything over the next six games.”
Vardy eyes 100-point season after Leicester's title win
Jamie Vardy has challenged his Leicester City team-mates to reach 100 points after sealing the Championship title with one game to spare.
The Foxes were promoted back to the Premier League without kicking a ball after Leeds United’s 4-0 defeat to QPR on Friday, but they needed to win on Monday to earn top spot.
Enzo Maresca’s side cruised to a 3-0 victory over Preston through Vardy’s brace and Kasey McAteer’s header, moving them to 97 points.
With one last milestone in their reach, Vardy wants to make sure they end an already successful season on a high.
Speaking to Sky Sports, he said: “We can celebrate it tonight, but now we have another target which is 100 points.
“We are over the moon. It has gone by quick but it's a graft. Not many days off, I'll tell you that.
“The lads - they've given it all. Thoroughly deserved, and I'm glad we've had 5000 to come and celebrate with us. It's not like it's 20 minutes up the road."
After a run of just three victories from nine games in the league between mid-February and April, Leicester have now won each of their last three outings.
Maresca has praised his players for their hard work in what he labelled a “tough season”.
“Fantastic, it's been a fantastic season. The Championship is a tough season and very intense, but I'm very happy," said Maresca.
"Now it's time to enjoy the work of the season to bring this special club back to the Premier League. We deserve it.
“The last two days they have been fantastic. We got promoted, but it was difficult in game preparation. But we used all of today to prepare for the game, the morning and afternoon. It was good.”
Preston 0-3 Leicester City: Foxes seal Championship title in style
Leicester City cruised to a 3-0 win over Preston in the Championship on Monday to clinch the title with a game to spare.
Jamie Vardy was the star for the Foxes as he scored in both halves before Kasey McAteer made sure of the points with an unmarked header.
Abdul Fatawu had the chance to cap an already memorable night for the travelling fans but hit the post with his curler.
Preston slumped to a fourth consecutive defeat, while Leicester go into their final game against Blackburn Rovers with the knowledge that they will lift the trophy after the final whistle.
Data Debrief
Jamie Vardy has scored 18 goals this season (two in this game), more than any other Leicester player in the competition. He has also netted in his last three games, scoring four goals in total.
It was a dominant performance from the Foxes, who had 19 shots with 11 of those on target. At the other end, Preston only managed to test Jakub Stolarczyk once from their five attempts.
Hull City 3-3 Ipswich Town: Tigers fight back three times to deny Tractor Boys
Ipswich Town missed the chance to move into an automatic promotion spot as play-off-chasing Hull City came from behind three times in a thrilling 3-3 Championship draw at The MKM Stadium.
Ipswich knew a victory would take them second after Leeds United were surprisingly beaten 4-0 by Queens Park Rangers on Friday, and they led on three separate occasions, George Hirst opening the scoring before Omari Hutchinson produced two brilliant strikes from the edge of the area.
However, buoyed by slip-ups from rivals Norwich City and West Brom earlier on Saturday, Hull dug deep to fight back on each occasion, Ozan Tufan and Liam Delap scoring their first two equalisers.
With Liam Rosenior's men 3-2 down with just four minutes to play, substitute Noah Ohio blasted his shot in off the crossbar to punish an error from Ipswich goalkeeper Vaclav Hladky.
The result keeps Ipswich behind second-placed Leeds on goal difference, though the Tractor Boys have a game in hand to come at Coventry City on Tuesday.
Hull, meanwhile, are two points adrift of the top six, with Norwich's goal difference advantage meaning their top-six spot is all but assured. The Tigers will, however, leapfrog West Brom if they beat Plymouth Argyle on the final day and Albion lose to Preston North End.
Data Debrief: Hutchinson's best not enough
Hutchinson was a man who deserved to be on the winning side on Saturday, giving Ryan Allsop no chance with two near-identical left-footed strikes from the right corner of the penalty area.
His goals came from an expected goals (xG) total of just 0.6, and he led all players on the pitch for shots (eight) and passes in the final third (21), also laying on three chances for his team-mates.
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