Neil Warnock provides updates on Middlesbrough duo Ashley Fletcher and Grant Hall while highlighting potential catastrophe

The 24-year-old limped off with a knock against Bournemouth a fortnight ago and wasn’t risked at the Kiyan Prince Foundation Stadium.

Yet Boro boss Neil Warnock has revealed Fletcher is back in training and is likely to be in the squad to face the Tykes.

The Teessiders now have more competition in attack following the arrival of Chuba Akpom, who scored on his debut at QPR after heading home Paddy McNair’s corner.

Warnock has also been impressed with new club captain Britt Assombalonga who started alongside Akpom last weekend.

“They are all really hard working those lads,” said Warnock when asked about his frontmen. “Ashley has done really well and Britt has never worked harder in his life so it’s nice to see Chuba come in and take that opportunity.

“It was a great ball in again from Paddy and a great header, a lot better header than what people give him credit for.”

Boro centre-back Grant Hall won’t be available this weekend after the defender tore his calf in the second half at QPR, and Warnock didn’t put a timescale on the setback.

Yet Warnock says the biggest problem could be players being called up for international fixtures after this weekend, with Boro duo McNair and George Saville set to play for Northern Ireland.

“The biggest problem this week is our Northern Irish lads,” added Warnock.

“They go away this weekend, travel to Bosnia on the Thursday to play on Thursday night, come home and play on the Sunday to play Austra in Ireland.

“Then they travel to Norway to play on a Wednesday night, they get back to Belfast on Thursday night at 2:15 in the morning, goodness what time they get to bed and then they have to come back and play Reading on Saturday.

“There are going to be some problems in the next few months, we are going to have to look at how we can help players out otherwise there is going to be a catastrophe.”

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