Middlesbrough now have nine cup finals in hunt for promotion

On November 23, Middlesbrough – wandering aimlessly in mid-table of the Championship – were beaten by visiting Preston in front of 18,000 fans in Chris Wilder’s second match in charge and there was a wearisome sense of inevitability at developments.

All was quiet on the Preston front and the Boro shirts were heavy, with Wilder afforded an early insight into the Riverside malaise which had afflicted the club for the previous four years.

It is why he pointedly referenced the importance of remedying home form in his opening address to Boro supporters following his appointment.

Since that Preston match less than four months ago, the Riverside has rocked to the front-foot beat of Wilderball. Home matches have become fun again and successful in double-quick time.

After nine consecutive home wins in all competitions – including a magic one against Tottenham – it took the arrival of the world and European champions to stop Boro’s fun in front of a sell-out crowd. It’s worth remembering that.

Pockets of Teessiders who hung around the ground afterwards were still determined to sing long into the night.

The ‘Chris Wilder said’ chant which has become the signature tune of his own version of the Riverside Revolution was the undoubted favourite. Against Preston, fans trudged away, muttering: ‘Same old Boro.’

Middlesbrough exited the FA Cup deservedly on Saturday, but with plenty to take from this year’s cup of plenty, even if Yorkshire’s wait for a first semi-final appearance since 2014 goes on.

Victories over Spurs and Manchester United will be recalled with fondness like some of the great nights of the Bryan Robson, Steve McClaren and Aitor Karanka eras and they have whet the appetite for more.

To have any chance of recording a perfect 10 on home soil, Boro had to be flawless and hope that their visitors were off it.

Chelsea were anything but en route to their ninth straight win over Boro. Speaking of nine, Wilder’s side now face nine ‘cup finals’ in the Championship and hopefully a three-match odyssey in the play-offs. Wembley may arrive yet.

Wilder, grateful for the international break ahead of the final push, said: “Now we have a little bit of time to rest the mind and body and there’s nine games to go and I think there are 10 teams in it.

“We are right amongst it and have just got to be nice and calm and go about our business.

“I thought our support was outstanding right the way through (against Chelsea). You are 2-0 down and there was a long way back, but the supporters stayed with us and I have got to say thanks for that.”

Wilder’s counterpart Thomas Tuchel had mentally prepared for ‘an emotional game’ with the world and his wife taking pot-shots at Chelsea following the sanctioning of outgoing owner Roman Abramovich.

Fortunately, his players had their business heads on and were quicker in thought and deed and better technically than Boro, who did possess one threat in Isaiah Jones. Others in red were comfortably taken care of.

Two goals inside the first half-hour effectively ended this tie and Chelsea’s strategic decision-making when to break the Boro press was top-notch as was their calmness and order at the back, ably led by the immaculate Thiago Silva, a Maserati who still purrs at the age of 37.

Further forward, Mason Mount – who set up both goals – showed just why top-level coaches wax lyrical about him and trust him, while the intelligence and smartness of Mateo Kovacic also shone through.

Up front, Chelsea had the brute force and goalscoring power of Romelu Lukaku.

He roughed up Dael Fry in the first half – the Boro defender went off with a groin niggle which is thankfully not a major issue – and while the striker could not bully his replacement in Sol Bamba, he had already completed some important work.

Fittingly, it was Silva who started the work to the Blues’ opener which was netted by Lukaku.

Silva won the ball in the air and then played a clever one-two with Hakim Ziyech, who found Mount. He then produced a radar-like low cross to pick out Lukaku, who had evaded Fry with the ball flying into the net in an instant.

Chelsea’s second goal, also on the counter, was swift and deadly and something you don’t encounter at Championship level.

Malang Sarr and Kovacic were involved as was the marauding Mount, who found Ziyech, who was hugging the right touchline.

The Moroccan international, a huge problem when Chelsea beat Wilder’s Sheffield United side 4-1 in November 2020, was allowed to cut inside onto his wand of a left foot and his venomous swerving low shot deceived Joe Lumley.

Things could have got messy had Anfernee Dijksteel not cleared off the line to deny Lukaku after Boro were again undressed. Thankfully, they didn’t.

Boro were better on the restart, even though a second key man in Paddy McNair also went off injured. A foot problem should not rule him out of any league matches, although it may preclude his international involvement with Northern Ireland in the next eight days.

Work done, Chelsea, in cruise control, dropped down the gears. Home fans stuck with it and roared support as they must in the key league games ahead.