Middlesbrough 1-2 Hull: Liam Rosenior’s side stage second-half comeback as Liam Delap and Ozan Tufan both score to send the Tigers into play-offs contention

Hull showed battling qualities which may well lead to a play-off challenge as Liam Delap and Ozan Tufan goals stunned Middlesbrough.

Trailing to Emmanuel Latte Lath’s early strike, the Tigers had been second-best in the first-half before clawing their way back into the contest.

When Tyler Morton’s 69th-minute corner was flicked on by Jacob Greaves, Delap found himself completely unmarked to thud home a close-range header.

If that was a frustrating goal to concede for Michael Carrick’s side, things would get even worse when Tufan swept home from fellow substitute Greg Docherty’s ball eight minutes form time.

The collapse summed Middlesbrough up at the moment as they slumped to a fourth defeat in five. Liam Rosenior’s Hull, by contrast, are only outside the top six now on goal difference.

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It hasn’t quite clicked for Carrick’s side yet this season after they reached the play-offs last time out. The mitigating factor remains the absence of several players through injury but their recent form is still poor by anyone’s standards.

Hull haven’t exactly been consistent themselves but showed battling qualities here, not least in surviving two goalmouth scrambles in the second period.

‘You’re getting mauled by the Tigers,’ sang the away fans in the corner at the final whistle and there could be a few more teams left with wounds yet.

Rosenior, 39, and Carrick, 42, may remain managerial novices but their styles are clear. In fact, they’re not too dissimilar, especially when it comes to bravely building out from defence.

There is a good deal of mutual respect, with both doing a decent job at these east coast clubs. In pre-match chatter, Rosenior described Carrick the player as ‘England’s Guardiola’ which isn’t a bad compliment at all.

In the first-half here, it was Carrick’s Middlesbrough who looked the more accomplished side. Rosenior’s Hull struggled to find their rhythm and their build-out play was littered with errors and nervy moments under the Boro press.

The hosts created their first chance after five minutes when Sam Greenwood fired over and were ahead in the eighth.

The goal stemmed from slackness on the part of ex-Boro player Cyrus Christie, who lost the ball and Boro took full advantage.

Greenwood fed Lukas Engel in behind Hull lines and his cut-back, intended for Greenwood, found a pocket of space just inside the area.

Isaiah Jones, back in the Boro line-up after suspension, pounced only to see his shot blocked. But the ball fell nicely to Latte Lath, whose shot went through the legs of a defender and goalkeeper Ryan Allsop, for his seventh of the season.

Boro continued to threaten and Latte Lath was unable to direct a Jones cross from the right flank goalwards as Alfie Jones slid in to block.

There were additional first-half chances for Isaiah Jones, who fired wide from a good position after Latte Lath was left in the clear to pick him out, and Greenwood, who curled a shot wide.

Hull actually had more first-half possession but struggled to make much headway. Their best chance came from a loose Boro clearance but Aaron Connolly curled a tame effort into Seny Dieng’s arms.

The visitors looked brighter from the outset of the second-half, with Delap finding himself in behind but unable to beat Dieng, who came out to shepherd the ball wide.

On 56 minutes, Morton fired high and wide from outside the box after Connolly had burgled back possession.

Match Facts

Middlesbrough (4-2-3-1): Dieng; Van den Berg, Fry, Dijksteel, Engel; Barlaser, Howson (c); I. Jones (Silvera 83), Crooks, Greenwood (Rogers 77); Latte Lath

Substitutes not used: Glover (GK); Clarke, Gilbert, Silvera, Coulson, Bangura, Nkrumah, McCabe

Manager: Michael Carrick

Scorer: Latte Lath 6

Hull City (4-2-3-1): Allsop; Christie (Vinagre 60), A. Jones, Greaves, Coyle (c); Seri (Traore 60), Morton; Slater (Docherty 70), Twine (Tufan 61), Connolly; Delap (McLoughlin 76)

Substitutes not used: Ingram (GK);Vaughan, Smith, Sellars-Fleming

Manager: Liam Rosenior

Scorers: Delap 69; Tufan 82

Booked: Coyle

Referee: Oliver Langford

Attendance: 24,158

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A poorly-executed Boro corner routine elicited groans from the Riverside crowd shortly afterwards and it showed the insecurity of their lead.

When Lewie Coyle was booked for a foul on Latte Lath down the other end, Greenwood was inches away with a wickedly swerving free-kick from 25 yards.

After the leveller, Hull then had to scramble the ball off the line as Greenwood and Matt Crooks stabbed at it inside a packed six-yard box.

In the end, Hull’s substitutes won it for them as Docherty and Tufan combined.

There was time for one last bodies-on-the-line scramble deep into stoppage time as Allsop saved crucially from Rav van den Berg and Dael Fry following a corner.

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