Bristol City manager Lee Johnson has insisted Boro will come good this season, despite their struggles early on.

Middlesbrough have had a tough start to the season so far, struggling for consistency and finding themselves 17th with just 5 points from 5 games.

Their opponents on Saturday, Bristol City, have had different fortunes so far – sitting in 4th place with 10 points.

However, despite the Robins’ strong start to the campaign and Boro’s poor form, manager Lee Johnson is not taking any chances against Woodgate’s side this weekend. He has warned fans that Boro still have plenty of quality within their squad, even after losing some of their star players over the summer.

“They’ve got good players – we can’t forget that Middlesbrough historically have got that strength in depth,” said Johnson.

“They’ve got good decision makers and good players. The new manager has come in and tried to adapt the style and still retain the same qualities from the previous regime.”

Johnson also revealed how he believes Boro will be in the race for the play-offs come the end of the season, once they start to gain some momentum.

“I think Middlesbrough – for sure – are a side you expect to be up in and around the promotion hunt,” he added.

“They probably haven’t started, in terms of points return, as well as they would have hoped, but it’s early days.

“It can change so quickly with one win or a couple of wins, or a little bit of momentum. For us it’s a really difficult game. But one that we’ll relish and give everything we’ve got in to send the supporters away happy like they were a fortnight ago.”
[Quotes via Gazette Live]