Swansea City boss makes mentality claim after Middlesbrough draw

Swansea City head coach Vitor Matos praised the mentality of his players after they secured a hard-earned point from their home clash with Championship promotion contenders Middlesbrough on Monday.

Kim Hellberg’s side went into their long trip to Wales looking to bounce back from a dramatic home defeat against promotion rivals Millwall on Friday as a brace from Boro academy graduate Josh Coburn gave the Lions all three points at the Riverside Stadium. Things appeared to be falling Boro’s way when Alex Bangura fired them in front with just 12 minutes on the clock but two penalties from hosts top goalscorer Zan Vipotnik turned the game on its head by the time the half-time whistle had been blown.

Hellberg’s men hit back in the second-half as Scotland international Tommy Conway matched Vipotnik’s achievement by netting from the spot to ensure the points were shared. The draw, coupled with Ipswich Town’s win against Birmingham City, ensured Boro slipped out of the automatic promotion places with just five games remaining in the season. For Swansea, the point kept them within touching distance of a top ten finish and ensured they rounded off a solid Bank Holiday weekend after they had battled to an entertaining 3-3 draw at Sheffield United on Friday afternoon.

But for Matos, the draw also showed that his players were able to show an ‘insane’ level of commitment and show the right mentality to collect some reward from a high pressure game against a promotion contender - and he challenged his squad to build on a positive day during the final weeks of the campaign.

Competitive

Speaking after the draw, the Swans boss told the club website: "That was a game where we needed to put in a proper performance in terms of our mentality and our mindset. We knew we would need to stay concentrated until the last moment, defending the box really well and defending the space between the lines. I think we did that. With how we are, we needed the freshness from the bench as well. That was important to ensure we stay competitive, we know how Middlesbrough try to control games with the ball.

He continued: "So we needed to have a compact formation but to still be able to put them under pressure. We managed it in some moments, and in other moments we have to control that space. We created chances ourselves, I think it was a fair result between two teams who are in different moments. The commitment of the team was just insane, and that's what we need. We want to use this to build, and if you ask me what type of mentality I want this team to have next season, then it is this one. The mentality that wherever the game is, whoever we play against, we will compete."

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