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VfB STUTTGART v MIDDLESBROUGH FULL TIME REPORT
McClaren looked to maintain Boro's record of not conceding a European goal this season by opting for a defensive 4-5-1 formation at the Gottlieb-Diamler Stadion in Stuttgart tonight. Indeed he kept the same team that finished the match against Chelsea on Saturday.
The only change in defence was Davies replacing Parnaby who was pushed forward to a right midfield position. Boateng meanwhile made his first start for the Boro since December, having successfully replaced the injured James Morrison in the thirty-eighth minute in the match against the Champions at the Riverside.
Saturday's goal hero Yakubu was dropped to the bench to make way for Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink as the lone striker. Rochemback meanwhile played just behind the Dutchman and ahead of the four man midfield in a link-up role. Downing was on the left with Boateng and Doriva completing a combative and defensively-minded midfield.
Schwarzer, Davies, Riggott, Southgate, Pogatetz, Parnaby, Boateng (Kennedy, 78), Doriva, Downing (Johnson, 70), Rochemback, Hasselbaink (Yakubu, 82), Jones, Bates, Taylor, McMahon
THE FIRST HALF
The conditions were atrocious as the teams kicked off in Germany, with both goal areas partially flooded. The rain however had abated and the crowd were in good voice as play commenced.
In the second minute Boateng gave the ball away cheaply allowing Danijel Ljuboja to steal in and shoot from a tight angle from about eighteen yards out. Schwarzer parried the ball for a corner which was wasted by the German side.
From this Middlesbrough broke and put some good passing moves together, moves that culminated in a confident Rochemback cracking a speculative effort over the bar from around thirty yards out. The opening moments of the game were timid however, with both sides sizing each other up.
In the eighth minute Stuttgart, through former Newcastle 'favourite' Jon Dahl Tomasson, had another shot on target from eighteen yards. This was again saved comfortably by Schwarzer. A minute later Jesper Gronkjaer whipped in a dangerous ball that went behind the Boro defence and almost allowed Tommason to sneak in and score but he was not quick enough to the ball.
At this point Stuttgart were having the better of the play due to Middlesbrough's lack of closing down, particularly in midfield. This was exasperated by Boro's inability to retain possession and their tendency to give away needless sloppy balls. However Boro were constructing some good passing moves but these tended to break down in the final third of the field.
Pogatetz was caught ball-watching as Ljuboja got on his blind side and cracked a strong cross into the box in the fifteenth minute. Tomasson threatened once more by shooting from twelve yards but his shot went wide.
In the seventeenth minute another dangerous cross was punted into the box and an onrushing Stuttgart player threatened to meet it. Southgate got an expert last-ditch touch to the ball, taking the ball away from danger.
Just when Stuttgart looked like their domination would pay dividends, the Boro went up the other end and capitalised from a poor Stuttgart clearance. The ball deflected off of George Boateng to Hasselbaink who launched a fierce left-footed shot from just to the left of the penalty spot. The ball bounced through Timo Hildebrand's legs and over the line. The Boro fans went wild as Middlesbrough took an unexpected lead and obtained a very useful away goal.
VfB STUTTGART 0 MIDDLESBROUGH 1 (Hasselbaink, 20)
Instead of Stuttgart coming out and trying to make a game of it, the previous timidity shown by both sides continued unabated for the following fives minutes with midfield nullification being the order of the day. Indeed the most exciting thing that happened in this period was Pogatetz's reckless tackling, which was worrying from the point of view that he had already been booked. The Boro kept plugging away however but any threat was easily absorbed by the home defence.
On thirty Thomas Hitzlsperger gave Andrew Davies a problem and was allowed time and space around twenty yards out. He blasted a shot with his left foot but it went wide. After this another Stuttgart attack was snuffed out by Pogatetz but the ball came back into the box from Gerber. Riggott cleared this, but only back to Gerber again. After this Boro hearts were in their mouths as a possible handball decision could have been made against Davies but the referee waved away the German appeals.
On thirty-five Pogatetz allowed Gronkjaer to get to the by-line and whipped in another good cross allowing Soldo to launch a shot towards the Middlesbrough goal. Schwarzer conceded a corner but nothing came of this, with the referee blowing up for a foul on Pogatetz when the ball was launched in.
Gronkjaer shook off Pogatetz once more and again broke into the box in the thirty-eighth minute and cut the ball back to Tomasson who was threatening. Riggott however saved the day with some excellent defending. Indeed Pogatetz's inability to cope with the former Chelsea and Birmingham City man started to cause some concern for the Boro management.
In the forty-fourth minute Stuttgart once more attacked but again it was expertly cleared by Boro's strong defence. Shortly after this the whistle blew for half-time with the Boro being somewhat relieved as Stuttgart had started to pressure the English side towards the end of the game.
FIRST HALF REACTION
'Jimmy Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink.'
'Not totally convincing, but 1-0, can't complain too much'
Murphy_Smoggie
THE SECOND HALF
Middlesbrough exploded out of the traps and made a perfect start to the second half with their first attack after the interval. George Boateng skipped the challenges from the Stuttgart defence and laid the ball into the box. Hasselbaink was marked and thus unavailable but the ball found Stuart Parnaby seven yards out who made no mistake with his shooting, the sheer power of his shot allowing him to score a priceless second away goal. It was his third goal of 2006, and indeed his third ever senior goal.
VfB STUTTGART 0 MIDDLESBROUGH 2 (Parnaby, 46)
The Stuttgart fans turned their backs on the stadium and linked hands in a show of unity against their team, who, like Middlesbrough, have been somewhat underachieving this season. Simultaneously the Boro contingent were the only fans making noise in the Gottlieb-Daimler Stadion as the game once more descended into a timid tit-for-tat affair.
The 'action' contiuned however and on fifty-four Parnaby launched the ball into the box, capitalising on a lack of Stuttgart discipline, but the attack was cleared. Middlesbrough regrouped however and patiently passed the ball in front of the German defence until it was stolen from them. Yet a minute later Downing broke from the inside of the Boro half and passed the ball to Hasselbaink, who glided past Delpierre to force a one-on-one situation with the Stuttgart keeper. Hildebrand saved the right footed curling shot, conceding a corner in the process. Nothing came of this.
Rochemback peeled off Gronkjaer on fifty-seven, who dinked it into Downing. He shot towards goal but his weak shot was comfortably saved by the Stuttgart stopper. At this juncture Middlesbrough were fully in control of the tie and were toying with their opponents, expertly stroking the ball around the park.
Stuttgart still showed the Boro that they were a threat, with Gronkjaer's first delivery of the second half. He crossed from the right but Tomasson's poor touch allowed the chance to go begging and Boro's defending, which was far too deep, thankfully went unpunished.
After this a second substitution for Stuttgart (the first had happened at half time - Beck for Stranzl) was made in an attempt to stop the relentless tide of blue from drowning their European aspirations. Stuttgart went 4-3-3 to try and change the game, with 23-goal hero Gomez joining Ljuboja and Tomasson in attack.
On sixty-four Boro launched another powerful break but it was snuffed out by the Stuttgart defence. Two minutes later however, Davies conceded a free kick in a dangerous area, giving Gronkjaer a chance. This was spurned however and Boro once more broke as the Boro fans started singing 'Are you Chelsea in disguise?'
On seventy-two Steve McClaren substituted Stewart Downing for young Adam Johnson in a straight tactical swap. Two minutes later play had to be stopped for an injury to George Boateng, who had started to labour through a lack of match fitness. It was decided to protect the Dutchman by substituting him for Jamie Kennedy. This switch was just precautionary however as it was later revealed that Boateng had no significant injury problem. Meanwhile Stuttgart made a substitution as well, with a straight midfield swap - Gentner coming on for Meißner - in an attempt to change Stuttgart's rather predictable tactical play (i.e. pass it to Gronkjaer and hope he can put a cross in).
In the seventy-ninth minute another free kick on the edge of the box was conceded, with Pogatetz handling the ball. Boro won the header when the ball was crossed into the box, summing up their superior aerial presence all evening. A minute later, Gronkjaer reversed the ball back into the box and Andrew Davies was strong in the header to deny Ljuboja a scoring opportunity. This was the first chance Stuttgart had created in around ten minutes.
In the eighty-second minute Yakubu replaced Hasselbaink to much applause from the Boro faithful. However it was Stuttgart who were applying the pressure, with Davies again being required to be strong in the tackle to deny the German side.
A few minutes later Ljuboja was once more taken down just outside the area, this time by Rochemback. The number of free-kicks the Boro were conceding in dangerous positions was worrying. And this time they were made to pay for it. Ljuboja hit the free-kick perfectly and powerfully, outfoxing Schwarzer. Indeed the keeper was out of position and had left his right hand side somewhat exposed, allowing Ljuboja to score. Thus another late goal was conceded by Middlesbrough and the complexion of the tie had changed.
VfB STUTTGART 1 MIDDLESBROUGH 2 (Ljuboja, 87)
Stuttgart came streaming towards the Middlesbrough goal after this and Riggott was beaten in the air for the first time this evening, allowing Tomasson to shoot towards goal after an Andreas Beck cross. This was comfortably saved by Schwarzer. The Boro broke from this and Rochemback had a crack at goal from thirty yards out but his shot just skidded across the surface and was handled assuredly by Hildebrand.
INTO THE RED ZONE
Middlesbrough struggled to clear after this but the ball broke to Yakubu who failed to release Adam Johnson who was completely clear and would have been one-on-one with the keeper. Yakubu did however invite the foul and thus won a free kick, allowing tired Boro legs to rest for a few seconds. This also resulted in the booking of Fernando Meira who now misses the return clash at the Riverside next Thursday.
However Stuttgart were not finished yet and Gronkjaer launched a mazy run into the box but again his shot lacked accuracy. This was the last action of the game as the whistle blew to signify full time, to the boos of the home fans.
Middlesbrough put in a spirited, determined and gritty performance this evening and two away goals certainly put the English side in the driving seat. However Stuttgart did threaten and if it had not been for the imperious defending of our centre-backs then the scoreline could have been quite different. However a good result all told and one that gives us a great chance of progressing to the final sixteen.
FULL TIME FAN REACTION
'A team on the recovery. A near-perfect away leg'
Smoggy_Suicide
'Bring on Barca'
Westham
COB Man of the Match: Chris Riggott. He won practically everything in the air and saved the day with a few last-ditch tackles. Both he and Southgate were tight all game and had it not been for the young centre-back the complexion of this tie may have been very different.
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