Middlesbrough are overcompensating for their lack of goals, fears Tony Pulis

Middlesbrough manager Tony Pulis believes the lack of goals in his side is causing his players to lose focus during matches.
Middlesbrough manager Tony PulisMiddlesbrough manager Tony Pulis
Middlesbrough manager Tony Pulis

Boro went down 2-1 at Loftus Road, where Nahki Wells netted the winner on the hour mark.

It leaves promotion-chasing Boro without a win in four matches with just three goals scored during that run.

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Former Huddersfield Town and Bradford City striker Wells scored nine minutes after George Saville had volleyed home an equaliser for Pulis’ side to cancel out Pawel Wszolek’s early opener.

“Because we’re not scoring goals I think the team is trying their damndest to win a game of football,” said Pulis.

“I think the players have reacted to the fact that we haven’t been scoring goals and in their desperation to score we’ve lost our shape a bit.”

Pulis was also angry at the officiating, insisting referee Oliver Langford should have awarded the visitors a first-half penalty for a foul on Britt Assombalonga.

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Pulis said: “We had an incident in their box, from a corner, where Assombalonga is actually rugby-tackled down and the referee is just five yards away from it and doesn’t give it. Then we’ve got an incident in the second half where an offside is given but their player had touched the ball last, so Jonny Howson is not offside.

“Not only does he give offside, but the goalkeeper (Joe Lumley) takes it from the edge of the box from a rolling position when the incident has happened 25 yards away. It’s got to be an even playing field.”

QPR: Lumley, Furlong, Leistner, Lynch (Scowen 52), Bidwell, Wszolek, Luongo, Cousins, Freeman, Eze (Smith 88), Wells (Oteh 90). Unused substitutes: Ingram, Chair, Samuel, Smyth.

Middlesbrough: Randolph, Shotton, Ayala, Flint, Friend, Howson (Wing 64), Clayton, Saville (Fletcher 82), Downing (Tavernier 64), Hugill, Assombalonga. Unused substitutes: Konstantopoulos, Batth, McNair, Fry.

Referee: Oliver Langford (W Midlands).