Middlesbrough v Aston Villa: Semi-Final 1st Leg Pre-Match Thread

[Matt Collins]

He is expected to start regardless of whether the baby is born or not.

Boss Steve Bruce said:

“Sam Johnstone is sitting by his girlfriend’s bedside at the moment

“We hope that comes along quickly.”

(It’s bloody tomorrow, I don’t know why they’d be so confident it will arrive in the next 24 hours. If Bunn is playing I’ll be gutted)

[SoccerHQ]

Ah that's a problem we could do without.

I assume his GF is based in Cheshire so will be a struggle to get him to Boro if he hasn't travelled up with us.

[Meanwood Villa]

Mark "double save from a penalty" Bunn will do for me

[Malandro]

Slightly worried that we might have to go with Bunn in goal tomorrow. Pulis will have them shooting from everywhere if Johnstone is out.

Why would Johnstone be out?

I thought Bruce said earlier he was with his girlfriend expecting his first baby?

It would be awkward if it was a Bunn in the oven.

[Matt Collins]

Bloody hell this would be really bad news

Even if the baby does arrive, he might be absolutely knackered

Bunn is shit

[olaftab]

No worries as there is not a great deal of difference between two of them.

[Matt Collins]

Are you serious?

[Hairbandinho]

Their pace is really a big worry.

[dave.woodhall]

Their pace is really a big worry.

Few players move quickly, or at all, after they've been Huttoned.

[Damo70]

No worries as there is not a great deal of difference between two of them.

I think there is a difference in quality and also there would be a difference in sharpness/match fitness.

[brentastonb6]

No worries as there is not a great deal of difference between two of them.

I think there is a difference in quality and also there would be a difference in sharpness/match fitness

Bunn also has the amazing knack of making himself so very small and the net so very big apart from Penalties.
Can we not just bring him on if it’s deadlock in extra time ?

[brontebilly]

No worries as there is not a great deal of difference between two of them.

I think there is a difference in quality and also there would be a difference in sharpness/match fitness.

Bunn is one of the worst keepers I've seen play for us

[PeterWithesShin]

From the Boro OS

This will be the 143rd overall meeting between the teams. We have won 39 of the league games, Villa 59, with 32 draws.

The other 12 meetings have been in the FA Cup, League Cup and Zenith Data Systems (or Full Members) Cup, with Boro reaching Wembley for the first time by beating Villa over two legs in the ZDS Cup semi-final in 1990.

We played Villa twice away earlier this campaign, both matches within a week at Villa Park back in September. By Tuesday evening, we will have faced off five times in a single season - the last time that happened to Boro was against Arsenal in 2003/04.

Our home league game in December was the 130th meeting in the league. It was only the eighth time this fixture has been played in the second tier, and the first for 30 years. It was also Tony Pulis' first game as Boro manager.

The last time the teams met at this level, in 1987-88, both teams were promoted. We had identical goal differences but Villa had scored five more goals, one of the narrowest promotion margins in Football League history.

Villa went up automatically, Boro via the Play-Offs after beating first Bradford City, then Chelsea.

Our visitors' 10 away wins this season is their highest figure since then.

The first-ever penalty at Ayresome Park came against Villa, scored by Boro’s Joe Blackett in a 2-0 win in November 1903.

The first opposition player sent off in the Premier League at the Riverside was Villa’s Steve Staunton in May 1997.

The first opposition hat-trick at the Riverside came from Villa’s Luke Moore in February 2006. Micky Fenton and David Mills have scored hat-tricks for Boro against The Villans.

Middlesbrough sealed Villa’s last league title for them in 1981 by beating the only team who could catch them, Ipswich, on the final day. Despite losing at Arsenal the same afternoon Villa were champions. This season has seen Villa’s best points and wins total since then.

Stewart Downing joined Villa at the end of his first Boro spell, while Rudy Gestede and Adama Traore moved to Teesside from the Midlands club.

When Adama arrived, Albert Adomah headed in the opposite direction. The Ghanaian - Villa's top scorer this season with 15 goals - scored three against Boro while at Bristol City.

[Drummond]

Ah that's a problem we could do without.

I assume his GF is based in Cheshire so will be a struggle to get him to Boro if he hasn't travelled up with us.

No it won't. Helicopter would cover the distance in no time and plenty of places to land near Boro.

[kentishvillan]

So the first of the big days is finally upon us. Following the awful few weeks that Steve Bruce has been through domestically, coupled with the way that he has gone about turning around the shipwreck of a football club that he first encountered when he joined us, nobody will deserve promotion more than him. Not Pulis, not Rowett, not Jokanovic !
Let’s get the job done for Brucie, come on you Lions 🦁