Tony Pulis thrilled after Middlesbrough secure play-off spot

Posted Sunday, April 29, 2018 by PA

Tony Pulis will use next weekend’s trip to Ipswich to ensure his Middlesbrough side are ready for the Sky Bet Championship play-offs after they booked their place in the top six with a 2-0 win over Millwall.

Goals from Britt Assombalonga and Jonny Howson ensured Middlesbrough are guaranteed to finish in either fifth or sixth position, setting up a play-off semi-final against either Cardiff, Fulham or Aston Villa.

They have to travel to Portman Road first, and Pulis will use next Sunday’s game to make sure his players are in peak shape for the play-offs.

The Middlesbrough boss said: “We’re delighted that we’re now in the play-offs. Now, it’s a case of looking forward to the Ipswich game, and then going on from there.

“One or two players might need a rest and one or two players might be taken out of the Ipswich game. Alternatively, I might go with the same team.

“I’ll have a good look at it next week and have a good chat with the boys, and see where they are. Then we’ll look forward to those play-off games.

“The most important thing is that we’re right when we turn up here for the play-offs. The Ipswich game is important because it’s the next game, and anyone who knows me as a man or a manager will know that every game I go into, I want to win. But it’s about finding the right balance, and concentrating on what is really important for us.”

Millwall still have a mathematical chance of making the play-offs, but it would need a remarkable sequence of events for them to overhaul Derby and Preston on the final day of the season.

Nevertheless, with his side having exceeded all expectations this season, Neil Harris is hoping his players go out on a high when they host Aston Villa in their final game.

Harris said: “There’s still a chance. We could win by four or five and another team could lose by four or five, but if we’re honest, these things don’t normally happen in football.

“But we can still get to 70 points, and that’s the aim. If you had said to me at the start of the season that we’d be going into the final game not having to look over our shoulders at the likes of Burton, Bolton, Barnsley and Birmingham, I’d have been delighted.

“At the end of next week’s 90 minutes, it’ll be a time for reflection and we can look back on what we’ve achieved. Up until the last two games, we’ve done some miraculous things.

“We’ve probably been found out a bit in the last two matches, and I was disappointed with the goals we conceded here. It’s a bit of a reality check for our football club, but we want to go out on a high against Aston Villa now. I’ll be making sure I pick a team that can allow us to finish the season in style.”