Middlesbrough latest: Carrick on plotting Leicester downfall, West Ham scouting mission, worrying Howson and Hackney injury claims | OneFootball

Middlesbrough boss Michael Carrick doesn’t have a traditional approach towards football formations, and that line of thinking is exactly what helped them defeat Leicester City last weekend.

The former Manchester United man favours a fluid system that focuses on spaces and areas of the pitch to exploit, rather than rigid lines of attack and defence like many of his counterparts.

That approach has reaped rewards time and time again during his time at the Riverside, with last weekend’s 2-1 victory over the Championship leaders another example of him exploiting holes in the opponents’ line-up.

Carrick on Leicester tactics

A three-man defence of Paddy McNair, Matt Clarke and Rav van den Berg kept the Foxes at bay for much of the 90 minutes at the King Power Stadium, allowing Finn Azaz and Sam Silvera to blossom up front, while Lewis O’Brien impressed with his boundless energy.

Boro are the only team to do the double over Leicester so far this season, with a similarly impressive showing in a 1-0 home victory back in November where Sam Greenwood found the winner.

The change from four to three at the back against Enzo Maresca’s side proved dividends in both encounters this season, as it did in impressive showings against Chelsea and Aston Villa in cup competitions, and Carrick was delighted with how his team stuck to their task.

"I think we’ve used it enough," he said to Teesside Live after the victory. "We used it here today because they put five across their backline. We kind of played the same with Jonny [Howson] in Paddy’s [McNair's] position at home against Leicester.

"It was very similar, just different personnel and where Paddy is probably seen by most as a centre-back, Jonny is a midfielder. But it was very much the same job. I thought the boys took on very different jobs and dealt with the challenge unbelievably well. So I was really pleased with how they took that on board."

West Ham keen on Hackney

Hayden Hackney has been one of the star performers for Boro this season, with a number of stellar performances catching the eye of a number of Premier League clubs.

The Sun report that both West Ham and Nottingham Forest have had scouts at The Riverside to keep an eye on the England U21 international, while Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool are also said to be keen.

The 21-year-old has continued to dazzle after breaking into the first team in the last campaign, with a match-winning goal in a 1-0 Carabao Cup victory over Chelsea only adding extra millions onto his price tag.

After 38 appearances in 2022/23, Hackney has performed a further 28 times in the current season, with two goals to his name and two assists, as Boro find themselves 13th in the Championship table with 14 games left to play.

Hackney and Howson injury updates

Anyone travelling to the King Power Stadium to see Hackney in the flesh would have been disappointed, with the midfielder ruled out with a knee injury sustained in the 2-1 defeat to Preston North End last week.

Jonny Howson also injured his knee in the clash at Deepdale with the pair being assessed this week, and Carrick wasn't overly optimistic about their return.

"We’re waiting to see on both Hayden and Jonny, but it doesn’t look great, if I’m honest. They’ve both had scans and we’re waiting on them being assessed. Both of them twisted their knees in two tackles in the last five minutes at Preston," he told Teesside Live.

"It’s one of them where you kind of half smile about it because there’s another one where there is not much you can do about it. It kind of sums it up for us lately. I don’t want to lose the lads at all, but what can you do? Hopefully we can get them back sooner but we’ll have to wait and see how long."