Early Championship pacesetters Middlesbrough extended their lead at the top of the table as they defeated West Bromwich Albion to record their best ever start to a league season.
The victory made it 16 points out of a possible 18 as Rob Edwards’ side recorded a fifth win in six games to move four points ahead of Stoke City.
A first Boro goal in each half from summer arrivals David Strelec and substitute Kaly Sene proved too much for Albion and maintained the feelgood factor that head coach Edwards has generated in his first few weeks on Teesside.
Norway striker Aune Heggebo pulled one back late on for the Baggies with a header, but they slipped to a second successive defeat after starting the campaign unbeaten.
Although they remain fifth, Ryan Mason’s team are likely to drop below that with the rest of the weekend’s fixtures to come and a congested early-season table.
Strelec and Sene on scoresheet for new club
Strelec’s arrival from Slovan Bratislava created plenty of excitement, which only increased following his goal in Slovakia’s win over Germany in a World Cup qualifier.
He had only been a substitute in last Saturday’s draw at Preston North End, but the 24-year-old was in from the start here and required just 26 minutes to impress his new fanbase.
Luke Ayling flicked on Matt Targett’s long throw and the striker got the wrong side of his marker to beat Josh Griffiths from six yards.
Nat Phillips had forced a save out of Boro goalkeeper Sol Brynn inside the opening 60 seconds, but it was not until the second half that the Baggies grew as an attacking force.
Northern Ireland midfielder Isaac Price should have equalised when he arrived to meet Jed Wallace’s inviting cross, but he put his header wide.
Brynn was forced into a smart save from an effort by Ousmane Diakite but shortly after, Boro made sure of the three points.
Fine football involving Tommy Conway and Hayden Hackney teed up the chance for Sene, who had come on at the interval for Strelec, and the forward drilled his shot in off the post for his first goal for Boro but seventh of the season after scoring six in eight games for Swiss side Lausanne before his move to England.
Boro’s success maintained their 100% home record with three wins from three but they conceded their first goal at the Riverside when Heggebo headed past Brynn in the 90th minute for his first league goal.
That created a nervous five minutes of injury time, but the result will cement Boro’s growing belief they can remain in the thick of the promotion race as the campaign progresses.
‘We had to show another side’ – Boro reaction
Middlesbrough head coach Rob Edwards told BBC Radio Tees:
“It was a really good night for us in the end.
“It was a very tough game as you knew it was going to be. They’re a very good team, Ryan’s doing a very good job and they have good players, but we showed a lot of resilience tonight and that really pleased me.
“We had to show another side to ourselves. We’ve got lads still getting up to speed with English football and what we’re doing and hopefully we’re going to continue to improve as it goes on.
“We’ve not found our level yet and that is the exciting thing.”
‘We need to respond’ – West Brom reaction
West Bromwich Albion head coach Ryan Mason told BBC WM:
“A disappointing result. The small details dictated how the game went.
“Their goal from a set-play was disappointing, I didn’t feel like they created a great deal but they scored at good times and made it tough for us to break them down.
“The second half, we showed a little more belief, a little bit more directness and we created opportunities so it’s a disappointing result.
“We need to respond and we have another training week to improve and hopefully turn it around.”
[BBC]