Middlesbrough boss Michael Carrick believes players passed character test with win over Southampton

Before sealing a much-needed 2-1 win over the Saints, Middlesbrough were rooted to the bottom of the Championship table having failed to win any of their opening seven games.

Many fans will have feared the winless run was going to continue when Adam Armstrong opened the scoring for Southampton, but Middlesbrough struck back with goals from Riley McGree and Jonny Howson.

Speaking after the match, Carrick said: “It’s hugely positive. I just said to them in the dressing room, I was standing on the touchline in the second half thinking, ‘whatever happens here, I couldn’t ask any more of any of the players’.

“I speak a lot about how strong the group are, but words are words and some people might not believe what I’m saying. But it’s times where you’re tested where you see people’s true characters come out. That’s when you see what people are about and you saw that today.

“We started well, but we went a goal behind and it wouldn’t have come easy for them to put in the performance and the effort that they did.

“You could see the togetherness and the spirit, and that’s what made me most proud. The win came and that was brilliant. I was standing there on the touchline in the second half really proud of them anyway. That’s more powerful than a one-off result.”

Carrick was also left delighted by the support shown by fans, who had previously had to endure a miserable run of results.

He said: “I think that will help us moving forward and we’ll be stronger for the way we’ve all stuck together when it hasn’t quite been going so well.

“The supporters are included in that – to see the stadium like that at the end, with everyone enjoying it and celebrating, was great. It’s one game, but it’s not so much the one game and the result, it’s the overall feeling and collective support we feel that is the most important thing.”