Attack may be key to success

A NEW-LOOK Boro could well catch Swansea unawares in this afternoon’s televised showdown.

If Steve Agnew can introduce a vibrancy and fresh attacking outlook, from the start, then it may prove a Boro match winner. Swans boss Paul Clement has done a decent job since replacing Bob Bradley and lifted the club out of the bottom three.

But his team have lost their last two games and, with a bit of luck from Boro’s point of view, hopefully the initial impact of the new manager is waning. Both Swansea defeats came away from home, at Hull and Bournemouth, both of whom are in the bottom half of the table. Clement’s men do have a major threat up front in the form of the Spaniard Fernando Llorente, who has scored 11 league goals this season.

The Icelandic playmaker Gylfi Sigurdsson was the best player on the pitch when Boro entertained and beat Swansea in December, so he is sure to prove a thorn in Boro’s side again.

Boro’s major task, however, could come in dealing with the dangerous crosses from Tom Carroll and Leroy Fer.

In a match against Burnley at the beginning of the month, the Swans delivered no less than 35 crosses into the box.

However Swansea have recorded just one clean sheet since the middle of December which must give an indication to Agnew what can be achieved with a positive approach.

Certainly there is no way that Boro’s caretaker boss will ditch the defensive ideology which is the foundation of the side’s basic set-up. But everybody is aware of the need to introduce a bit of flair into Boro’s performances. It is the mouth-watering prospect of a new attacking ideal which could unhinge the Swans this afternoon. Let’s hope so!