Missing out on Chelsea trip isn't a concern but the manner of Middlesbrough's Carabao Cup exit against Barnsley is

Middlesbrough fans won’t have fond memories of what happened that night, as their side were dumped out of the competition on penalties by then-League Two outfit Crewe.

The final assessment was a simple one after that display: Many of the players who came in simply didn’t step up to the mark.

Tuesday’s 2-0 defeat by Barnsley at the Riverside wasn’t as chastening, yet there were certainly echoes of last season’s competition as Boro limped out in a disappointing fashion.

Manager Neil Warnock made seven changes to his team following Friday’s league match at Watford and said he was looking forward to seeing what some of his fringe and younger players could do.

Nathan Wood, Marc Bola, Dael Fry, Marcus Browne, Hayden Coulson and Lewis Wing all started, while new signing Sam Morsy made his debut and looked accustomed to the holding central midfield role.

A 70-minute run-out will have done the Egyptian international good, yet there weren’t many positives to take on a fruitless evening.

Barnsley played well, it must be said, with Gerhard Struber’s side slick in possession and dangerous on the counter attack.

They will advance to a third-round meeting with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge and deserve a crack at beating Frank Lampard’s star-studded side.

Missing out on another trip to the capital next week won’t really bother Warnock. “I hate this cup if I am honest,” was his assessment before kick-off.

The Chelsea match would also have fallen a few days before Boro’s away game at QPR, with lengthy trips to Bristol City and Cardiff also on the horizon.

Yet, after Warnock said several players had a point to prove before this match, few did much to warrant a start for Saturday’s league fixture against Bournemouth.

One thing which does look likely is that Boro will stick with a 3-4-1-2 formation against the Cherries, the system used by Warnock in pre-season and the one he’s deployed in Boro’s first three competitive games this term.

The set-up appears to suit most of the player’s at Warnock’s disposal, but doesn’t favour every member of the squad.

Browne, for example, naturally plays out wide but was brought in alongside Ashley Fletcher against Barnsley and didn’t look comfortable in a central striker’s role.

Coulson also struggled to make an impact after being selected in the right wing-back role, while Bola was given a chance on the opposite flank.

With Marvin Johnson clearly Warnock’s prefered choice on the left, Coulson, who was one of Boro’s best players last season, faces an uphill battle to receive a chance in his favoured position.

To be honest, though, Boro lacked creativity throughout the team and, aside from a few long-range efforts from Wing, rarely troubled Barnsley’s goal.

Tavernier was quiet playing just behind the front two, while Ashley Fletcher, who of the few survivors from Watford, didn’t see much of the ball up front.

At the other end of the pitch, goalkeeper Marcus Bettinelli was beaten twice at his near post by Patrick Schmidt and Jordan Williams as the damage was inflicted before half-time.

Boro improved slightly after the break but never really looked like mounting a comeback.

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