JibrinMiddlesbrough have a significant task on their hands this evening as they prepare to lock horns with relegation-battling Leicester City at the Riverside Stadium. Kim Hellberg’s men are desperate to return to winning ways following a dismal week on Teesside.
The home side have managed to collect just a single point from their last two outings. A soul-crushing defeat to league pacesetters Coventry City was followed by a lifeless goalless stalemate against Oxford United on Saturday, a result that has seen Boro slip further behind in the race for automatic promotion.
Although they still hold a six-point buffer over third-placed Millwall, Hellberg will be eager to preserve that gap over their promotion rivals by toppling a Foxes outfit currently languishing in the drop zone following a points deduction.
For Middlesbrough, this clash carries monumental weight—especially with Coventry not in action until Wednesday. The hosts will undoubtedly be up for the scrap. However, it appears Sontje Hansen will once again be absent from the equation, and the real story behind his exile has now come to light.
Kim Hellberg opens up on Sontje Hansen’s Middlesbrough struggles
Since Hellberg took the reins back in November, Hansen has featured on just three occasions—including a brief outing in the Swede’s very first match in charge, a 2-1 victory over Derby County. That game remains his sole start, and many have been left scratching their heads as to why the winger has vanished from the matchday picture.
Now, the Middlesbrough boss has laid his cards on the table regarding the Dutchman’s lack of minutes. He said (via: Northern Echo): “There are other players that are better. It’s as simple as that. It always comes down to those things.
“I’m trying to put out the best ones and those who give us the bigger chance to win the game. That’s what I go on and that is the answer to everyone who is not playing, that I think there are players that are better, for the moment.”
Hellberg has also made it clear what the Curacao international must do to fight his way back into the fold: “Develop, keep working, take steps. [It’s the] same thing as everyone. It’s the same for everyone. It’s always about reacting to what we are doing on the training pitch, show me that you are better, show me that you are developing.
“That’s the thing, there’s no other way of getting into the team. It almost always comes down to that. If they are not playing, I maybe think there are players that are better.”
Hansen’s World Cup dream hangs in the balance as Leicester loom
Since swapping Dutch side NEC Nijmegen for Teesside, Hansen has struggled to find any kind of rhythm, managing just 13 Championship appearances and notching a solitary goal. He saw far more regular game time under Rob Edwards, but since the former boss departed for Wolves, the 23-year-old has failed to convince Hellberg—and the timing couldn’t be worse.
With Hansen vying for a spot in Curacao’s historic World Cup squad, he can ill-afford to be watching from the sidelines. The nation has qualified for the global showpiece for the very first time, and having already bagged a goal in three caps, the winger will be desperate to catch the eye of the international selectors ahead of this summer’s tournament in the USA, Canada, and Mexico.
As things stand, however, a dramatic turnaround seems unlikely. For Hansen, the message from his manager is crystal clear: work harder, impress in training, and prove the doubters wrong. Until then, he remains on the outside looking in—and for Leicester City, that might just be one less threat to worry about this evening.
Jibrin
