Pundit drops 'mighty' Middlesbrough promotion claim live on Sky Sports involving Coventry City, Ipswich Town | OneFootball

Pundit drops 'mighty' Middlesbrough promotion claim live on Sky Sports involving Coventry City, Ipswich Town | OneFootball

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·10 febbraio 2026

Pundit drops 'mighty' Middlesbrough promotion claim live on Sky Sports involving Coventry City, Ipswich Town

Immagine dell'articolo:Pundit drops 'mighty' Middlesbrough promotion claim live on Sky Sports involving Coventry City, Ipswich Town

Kim Hellberg's side reached the Championship summit on Monday night against Sheffield United

Sky Sports pundit Michael Brown has weighed in on the promotion debate in the Championship after Middlesbrough reached the summit of the division on Monday night with a crucial 2-1 victory over Sheffield United at Bramall Lane.


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Kim Hellberg's side knew they were presented with the chance to reach the second tier's top spot for the first time since the autumn of 2025 after Coventry City's slump in form continued with a goalless draw to relegation-threatened Oxford United at the Coventry Building Society Arena on Saturday.

The Swede couldn't have asked for a much more controlled performance for the vast majority of the encounter against Chris Wilder's fellow in-form side, who knew they could also narrow the gap on the Championship play-off places with another home success, having recently defeated Ipswich Town in S2.

After a frenetic start to the match, Tommy Conway continued his rich vein of goalscoring form for the Teesside outfit after 19 minutes with a neat finish across the body of Michael Cooper whilst also under pressure from Blades right-back, Femi Seriki.

Riley McGree then netted his third goal of the campaign with a close-range header after Hayden Hackney's deflected effort came back out to the Australian off the post.

United would create some form of jeopardy for the travelling supporters when Patrick Bamford netted against his former employers in the second period, before Middlesbrough eventually secured a sixth successive league victory after Joe Rothwell was sent off on his debut for the hosts.

The North East side are now two points clear of Frank Lampard's side on 61 points, with 15 games of the campaign still to go, beginning with a mouth-watering clash between the division's top two in six days' time, whilst their nearest challengers for the automatic promotion places, Ipswich and Hull City, are both in FA Cup action on Friday night.

Michael Brown issues Middlesbrough promotion claim involving Coventry City and Ipswich Town

Immagine dell'articolo:Pundit drops 'mighty' Middlesbrough promotion claim live on Sky Sports involving Coventry City, Ipswich Town

As has been the case ever since Hellberg took over from Rob Edwards at the Riverside Stadium in November, Middlesbrough played with a remarkable intensity, whilst also dictating the flow of the match against the Blades, who had not lost in eight home matches beforehand.

As such, many have viewed the 2-1 success as a statement from Boro, who could increase their grip on top spot with a first victory against Coventry since January 2022 next Monday.

Viewing the club's upcoming matches and promotion chances alongside David Prutton, Paul Merson and Jobi McAnuff, Brown said: "I think the next one (vs Coventry) is mighty, isn't it.

"Obviously, (against) a Coventry side who are not going well," he added.

"I think the two home games against Oxford and Leicester (they can win). I feel like they are in their stride.

"We mentioned about Coventry sort of falling, Ipswich - whoever finishes anywhere near them (is in with a chance of promotion) due to the squad they've got," Brown stated.

"Like I asked him (Hellberg) there, 'you've just changed the outcome. To go and do that at Sheffield United like you have'. I think, all of a sudden, they're going to get extra eyes on them, and it could become a bit more difficult.

"I think there's some good fixtures for them (coming up), and I think they'll carry on."

Immagine dell'articolo:Pundit drops 'mighty' Middlesbrough promotion claim live on Sky Sports involving Coventry City, Ipswich Town

No side is in a greater run of form in the Championship right now than Middlesbrough, who have taken 18 points from a possible 18, navigating their way through some tricky assignments during said timeframe whilst scoring 16 times.

There is now a seven-point gap between themselves and the play-off places, which could be extended to double-figures by the time Ipswich and Hull return to league action on February 21st.

As such, Hellberg has got supporters feeling extremely confident that they will be seeing Premier League football return to Teesside for the first time in nine years at the start of next season.

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