Kim Hellberg has spoken to the media about Middlesbrough's key clash against Bristol City on Saturday.

Middlesbrough will look to get their promotion push back on track when they host Bristol City on Saturday lunchtime.

Kim Hellberg’s men suffered a damaging 1-0 defeat at home to Charlton Athletic on Wednesday, but they’re still holding on to second place by a single point ahead of Millwall. Up next is a Bristol side that has tumbled down the standings in the Championship play-off race, now 12th and seven points adrift of Wrexham in sixth after a disastrous run of three straight league defeats - as well as a 1-0 loss to League One side Port Vale in the FA Cup.

However, the Robins are still just about in the mix and not to be taken lightly, as proven by the fact they’ve won their last five meetings with Boro - including 2-0 at Ashton Gate in December - and are unbeaten in their last eight.

Kim Hellberg outlines Bristol City expectations

Despite Bristol’s recent dominance of this fixture, Boro remain heavy favourites on Saturday - not least thanks to form and overall quality. Indeed, Hellberg is expecting more of the same from the Robins compared to other sides to visit the Riverside Stadium this season, preparing his Boro side for a defensive opponent focusing primarily on frustrating their hosts.

“Like every team, in every game we play. They will try to do their best way of defending, looking at the defensive gameplan before the game,” Hellberg replied when asked at his pre-match press conference about what he expects from Bristol.

The Swedish coach continued: “[They will] try to strike us on a set-piece encounter, mainly. That’s how it’s been [all season]. That’s the right way to try to look at us, because we’re a very good football team, we have an unbelievable squad. How they play, how they act, how they take control of the games are unbelievable to be a part of and watch them do.

“So I think they (Bristol) will look at that, mainly, and try to defend and then, of course, they have some defensive thoughts in their head to strike us. But mainly, I think the teams look at their defensive structure [against us]. Whether it’s high, low, middle, whatever it is, and try to stop us.”

Gerhard Struber calls for unity amid tough Bristol City run

This is Bristol City’s worst run so far under Gerhard Struber, who has been in charge at Ashton Gate since June 2025. Tuesday’s 2-0 defeat was particularly disappointing, given it came against a Leicester City side winless in their previous 11 games across all competitions and mired in a close relegation battle.

Now, as they prepare to travel to the Riverside, Struber has called upon Bristol City supporters to stay behind their players as they desperate seek to keep their season alive. "I think when you are a Championship coach, you have to be, in this rollercoaster, always a stable person," Struber said on Thursday. "Of course, I think the last game in Leicester, I had a different expectation and especially when you have a performance like the first-half, this also makes something with me.

"I'm completely unhappy, and I was really angry after the game [with] how we did it. On the same time, we have a young group of players, we have new players, we have some topics at the moment, and they need, of course, a coach who has a good overview and can make the good decisions.

"Of course, I would wish [for] a little bit of a different frame, but that's sometimes the Championship. It's sometimes the rollercoaster where we are, and then we have to deal with that. "This is not always super nice, but we have to jump out and to struggle in the football management. This is sometimes, I think, in this direction, we have to be calm, we have to be really close together in all parties. Also, I hope our fans stick together, especially [at] Middlesbrough again, a really big fight, and we need our fans. "We need every single one with a really good energy next to my team to help in difficult times together."

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