Middlesbrough's transfer requirements eased plus encouraging defensive statistics: Talking points after Barnsley win

After a couple of days to reflect on the fixture, we take a closer look at where it leaves Neil Warnock’s side.

Dael Fry back to his best

Warnock told his players to give Fry a round of applause following the win, in what was the centre-back’s first league start of the season.

It’s been a difficult few months for the 23-year-old who tested positive for COVID-19 and missed a large part of pre-season in August.

Yet an injury for Grant Hall allowed Fry to return in the heart of Boro’s backline, before producing a man of the match display

A closer look at the stats show just how impressive Fry was against Barnsley as the visitors registered just one shot on target with a late penalty.

According to football database Wyscout, Fry won all five of his aerial duels and recorded a 86 per cent success rate for his total defensive duels.

Fry looked more comfortable in the middle of a back three compared to when he played as a left-sided centre-back against Shrewsbury in the Carabao Cup.

His return to form has come at a perfect time too, with Hall set to be sidelined for three to four weeks with a calf injury.

Transfer requirements eased

Warnock said last week that he’d ideally like to sign three or four more players, yet it may only be possible to bring in one or two.

We know the priority is to add another creative player to the group, and that Patrick Roberts is close to agreeing a season-long loan deal from Manchester City.

Boro have also been looking at other centre-backs they can sign on loan, while the squad also appeared short of options in the right wing-back position.

Warnock admitted he was disappointed with Djed Spence following the 1-1 draw at QPR, yet there seemed to be a lack of alternatives on the right flank.

Little did we know that Warnock was planning to play Marcus Tavernier as a wing-back, a position he excelled in against Barnsley.

"I was asking Tav to play in the hole but I think he’s happier when he has a line down the side of him,” said Warnock after the game.

Boro could still bring in another right-sided defender and have been linked with Wolves full-back Oskar Buur, yet Tavernier’s performance at wing-back could ease the need for a signing in that area.

Striker becoming a fans’ favourite

Despite missing a golden chance at 0-0, new Boro striker Chuba Akpom redeemed himself with a second-half goal against Barnsley.

The 24-year-old has now scored two goals in two starts since his arrival from Greek club PAOK, and is the first Boro player to score in his first two appearances since Mido in 2007.

"He’s a good lad. For the Championship he’s not as fit as he should be, but you can see he’s improving,” said Warnock after the match.

On the goal, he added: “For a striker, I love tap-ins when goalies have saved it. That’s the ones I love in training and it was nice to see him get on the scoresheet."

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