A report on Middlesbrough’s late-season home form highlights the problem. Charlton Athletic and Portsmouth reportedly won at the Riverside, while Oxford United and Bristol City left with draws. Those results point to a recurring issue: Boro can dominate the ball without creating enough disruption in the final third.
The answer is not to abandon patient build-up. Middlesbrough are at their best when they pin opponents back and move the ball through different areas of the pitch. But sustained control becomes less valuable when every attack follows the same tempo and passes arrive in front of a settled defence.
Hellberg appears to need more variation around the penalty area. Earlier forward passes can force defenders to turn, while diagonal runs and rotations between the winger, full-back and attacking midfielder can open gaps that possession alone will not create.
The report points to Sheffield Wednesday and Watford as examples of home wins that included quicker forward play. That change of rhythm unsettled opponents and reduced their time to reset. It offers a useful blueprint: retain the ball when the game demands patience, but attack space immediately when a defensive line loses its shape.
Set pieces, early crosses and switches of play should also form part of the solution. A low block becomes easier to break when it cannot predict whether the next attack will come through the middle or from the outside.
Tactical flexibility is only effective if the squad can sustain it. The report says fatigue and a shortage of suitable substitutes limited Middlesbrough’s options late last season. Recruitment must therefore provide Hellberg with attackers who offer different profiles rather than more versions of the same player.
The next Championship campaign will bring opponents prepared for Middlesbrough’s possession game. Hellberg’s progress will be measured by how quickly Boro can change the questions they ask. Their next transfer window and opening fixtures should reveal whether the club has built a genuine Plan B-or merely discussed one.