Kim Hellberg to blame for Middlesbrough wobble? Claim made on Riverside situation | OneFootball

FLW’s Boro fan pundit has commented on the criticism directed towards Kim Hellberg following a five-game winless run.

Middlesbrough’s automatic promotion hopes took another damaging blow as they were held to a frustrating draw by Swansea City on Easter Monday.

It was a penalty fest in South Wales after Alex Bangura gave the visitors the lead, with a brace of spot-kicks from Zan Vipotnik turning the tide to put the Swans in front, but Tommy Conway’s effort from 12 yards out 15 minutes from time meant the spoils were shared.

It was a desperately disappointing day for the Teesside outfit as Ipswich Town’s 2-1 victory over Birmingham City meant they went above Boro into second spot, while the Tractor Boys have two games in hand to draw some daylight heading into the final run-in.

It means Kim Hellberg’s men are likely to be in the play-off mix come May, which will be gut-wrenching given they’ve occupied an automatic promotion place for the majority of the campaign.

But a stumble in form at such a crucial time looks set to cost them, with their latest draw with Swansea meaning Boro have now failed to win any of their last five second tier outings, with three draws and two defeats in that time.

And because of such a dip in both performances and results, some Boro fans have taken to social media to point the blame at Hellberg for such a dismal run.

With this in mind, FLW’s Middlesbrough fan pundit has commented on whether he believes Hellberg is to blame for Boro’s top two hopes crashing down.

Kim Hellberg not to blame for Middlesbrough slump

Speaking to Football League World, Middlesbrough fan pundit Liam Day believes boss Kim Hellberg isn’t the man to blame for Boro’s recent slump in form, pinning blame on the squad limitations for their inability to get over the line in the race for the top two.

Liam told FLW: “There’s no doubt it’s been a very tough period being a Boro fan, but I don’t think Kim Hellberg deserves any of the blame to be completely honest.

“I think there’s a lack of options in the squad. You can see that with the subs, very underwhelming realistically, he just doesn’t fancy them. Obviously, some of our recruitment was with another manager, so a part of that you can understand.

“It’s frustrating. We were in such a good position, but the way we’re playing, we’re getting into the positions but not taking the chances, and Monday (against Swansea City) was certainly individual errors more than anything else, so I don’t believe Kim Hellberg deserves any of the blame.

“We’ve got a keeper who just isn’t ready for a Premier League promotion chasing team and we’ve got some players in there who can have clangers in them, and that showed, so I think summer recruitment, if we can get right, we’ll be a force next season, however tough the division is with the teams coming down.”

All is not lost for Middlesbrough this season

The Easter weekend hasn’t been kind to Middlesbrough, with the majority connected with the club now feeling their automatic promotion hopes are over following a winless run of five matches.

With two games in hand, Ipswich are in the driving seat to coast away and seal second spot in the Championship, meaning Boro look set to be forced into the lottery of the play-offs.

But all is not lost in their season despite the disappointment. Boro still have time to get confidence levels back and make sure they seal third place in order to give themselves the best route to a play-off final at Wembley.

So in the last five games, Hellberg has to find a way to get the team firing again, and if he can find a solution, then you would still back Boro to get back to the top-flight, even though it will be a trickier route there.

Frustration is understandable given how the end of the season is playing out, but unity is needed more than ever for Middlesbrough to enter the play-offs with positive momentum and ensure they have the best possible chance of still tasting success this season.