Pundit lauds 'solid' Middlesbrough and makes bold prediction ahead of Blackburn Rovers clash

In his midweek predictions for Sky Sports, pundit David Prutton included a scoreline tip for the eagerly anticipated clash between Rovers and Boro, and went for a 2-1 away win for Neil Warnock's in-form side.

Justifying his selection, the former Leeds United man explained: "Before Blackburn's defeat to Swansea at the weekend, I mentioned their defensive frailties, which were evident again in a 2-0 defeat. Tony Mowbray's side had a good start but have lost four of their last five and that may set some alarm bells ringing at Ewood Park.

"Meanwhile, Middlesbrough continue to improve under Neil Warnock and they seem to have regained the defensive solidity that had become synonymous with Boro in recent years.

"They've not set the world alight with their performances on the road but have taken five points from those games and I think they'll extend their eight-game unbeaten run here."

The last time the two sides met, back in February, Boro were held to a 1-1 draw at the Riverside Stadium, in a match dominated by the hosts.

As things stand, Middlesbrough currently sit fifth in the table with 16 points, while this evening's opponents are 14th with ten points.

Prutton's further predictions were as follows:

Huddersfield 2-1 Bristol City

Norwich 2-2 Millwall

Sheffield Wed 0-1 Bournemouth

Nottingham Forest 1-1 Coventry

Reading 1-2 Preston

Rotherham 1-1 Luton

Watford 0-1 Stoke City

Derby County 2-1 QPR

Birmingham 1-1 Wycombe

Cardiff 2-2 Barnsley

Brentford 3-2 Swansea City