BBC Sport pundit gives ‘frustrating’ verdict in prediction for Leeds United v Middlesbrough clash
BBC Sport pundit Ben Parker has predicted Leeds United will come away with all three points when they face a “frustrating” Middlesbrough side.
Both teams head into the Championship contest at Elland Road on Saturday (2 November) on the back of a victory in midweek.
Leeds are eight points better off than their opponents, though, having showed far more consistency across the opening 18 matches.
Parker predicted a 2-0 home win on the LS11 podcast [30 November, 1hr 0m 50s] and said: “[Middlesbrough] are good. They’re one of them where if they go on a run, they can reel off five, six, seven in a row.
“But on the other side, they can get into a losing rut. It must be frustrating being a Middlesbrough fan because they’ll be thinking ‘we’re a good team, we just need to be more consistent’.
“To be fair, there are a lot of teams in that bracket. But on their day, they’re one of the better teams in the division.”
Parker, who works as a pundit for BBC Sport among others, added: “I’m looking forward to it.
“It’ll be a tough game; they’ll bring a good fanbase so it should be a good atmosphere at Elland Road. It’s a good opportunity to put a winning run together, to get successive wins at Elland Road.”
Up and down
Middlesbrough recently won six Championship games in a row, following swiftly on from a run of no wins in seven to begin their campaign.
Since then, they have lost to Stoke City and Bristol City, defeated Leicester City and Preston North End, and drawn 3-3 with Plymouth Argyle.
That is the epitome of an inconsistent side, summed up by the fact they are 10th in the table, albeit just three points off the play-off spots.
Boro certainly turned up in their most recent game as they beat Preston 4-0. However, not since October have they won back-to-back matches.
Leeds have been far more consistent over the past couple of months, meanwhile, having won four and drawn one of their past five matches.
The Whites are still hot on the heels of Ipswich Town, who are seven points better off in second place.
All Daniel Farke’s men can do for now is continue reeling off the wins, which will hopefully be the case when Boro arrive this weekend.
In other Leeds United news, the 49ers could be made to look stupid if they go ahead with a certain plan for the January window.