The Middlesbrough manager understands where his team must improve as they prepare to face Sunderland next weekend.
Middlesbrough manager Michael Carrick has pushed his team to find a ruthless edge before Saturday’s trip to Sunderland.
Boro had a terrible weekend as their push for the Championship play-offs was derailed by a disappointing home draw against struggling Preston North End. The visitors entered at the Riverside Stadium with only three points from their first four games of the season, and were languishing in and around the second-tier relegation zone. The game appeared to be taking shape when former Bristol City forward Tommy Conway put Carrick’s team ahead shortly after the quarter-hour mark with his second goal in as many home games. Boro had several chances to extend their lead, but North End’s Mads Frøkjaer-Jensen equalized just before halftime. Boro could and perhaps should have won the game in the second half, as they had the better of the chances but were unable to break down a hardworking and disciplined North End side, prompting Carrick to lament his team’s inability to ‘adapt’ to the various challenges posed by Paul Heckingbottom’s men. He stated: “I believe we should have won the game. We were in a terrific position to win the game and had numerous possibilities to score more. We didn’t give away too much again, so there are plenty of nice things in there that will help us in the long run. I told the boys that it’s about killing teams when we get them. We were 1-0 ahead and in a terrific position to press for the next goal and stay positive. It probably wandered for five or ten minutes, we thought. It’s a different game in the second half when they have something to hang onto. Towards the end, when teams go man to man and are there to stop us, 
to adapt and devise methods of breaking them down. We tried, and I think there was a lot of excellent attitude and application, but we just couldn’t find that extra pass in the end.” Carrick chose to give Ipswich Town loanee George Edmundson his debut, while defender Neto Borges made his Riverside Stadium debut. A third newcomer, on-loan Liverpool teenager Ben Doak, came off the bench midway through the second half as Boro attempted to break down their opponents. Carrick reflected on his decisions regarding his freshly recruited trio and admitted that patience was required as they settled into life on Teesside.
“It’s still early,” said the Boro manager. “It’s Neto’s first home game, George’s first game, and Ben is on the pitch.
Tommy hasn’t been here very long. There is a freshness and settling in time, so I’m not becoming too frustrated. I believe we are all focusing on the group’s strengths and potential and feeling excited about it.
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