BURTON Albion are back on the road for the second time in four days as they take on Garry Monk’s Middlesbrough at the Riverside Stadium this evening.
The sides have met on two occasions before, both in cup fixtures. They first met in the FA Cup back in January 2011 where Burton Albion ran out 2-1 winners at the Pirelli Stadium thanks to a Shaun Harrad brace. Middlesbrough visited again four years later, where the scoreline was reversed and Boro claimed the victory with Christian Stuani netting the winner in the 109th minute.
Middlesbrough lost their opening day fixture 1-0 to Wolverhampton Wanderers, but have since got three points on the board after a 1-0 win over Chris Wilder’s Sheffield United at the Riverside. The Brewers also lost their opening day fixture 1-0 and haven't yet managed to get points on the board after a 4-1 defeat to Hull City most recently.
Jackson Irvine is suspended after his sending off at Hull on Saturday, while centre-back Ben Turner serves the fourth of a five-game ban. Defender Stephen Warnock misses out after limping off at the KCOM Stadium, with summer signing Liam Boyce a long-term absentee with an ACL injury picked up in pre-season.
Stephen Bywater will continue to occupy the goalkeeper position as new loan signing Connor Ripley will be ineligible to feature against his parent club. Harry Campbell will take a place on the bench.
Centre-back Daniel Ayala and striker Martin Braithwaite both missed the 1-0 win over Sheffield United with injuries picked up in training. Lewis Baker, signed on loan from Chelsea, came off the bench against the Blades and will hope to have done enough to earn his first start.
Tim Robinson will be the man in the middle tonight, as the West Sussex-based referee officiates his fourth match of the season. Mr Robinson has taken charge of three matches so far this season, one of those being a Carabao Cup tie between Exeter and Charlton where he dished out three yellow cards and a red. Robinson officiated 44 matches in total last season which saw an average yellow card return of 4 per game. He also handed out nine red cards during that time.
Tickets are still available for Burton Albion supporters, although they will go off sale at 1PM today. Supporters wishing to purchase tickets on the day can do so at the Riverside Stadium from 6PM at the visitor’s ticket office.
Prices are as follows:
Adults: £30.00
Over 65: £20.00
Under 18: £17.00
Middlesbrough have six Audio Descriptive Commentary Devices available for partially sighted or blind supporters. The devices require a £10 deposit which will be reimbursed at the end of the game. Supporters should contact Middlesbrough directly to arrange collection.