What Neil Warnock told Marcus Bettinelli after Bristol City win as Middlesbrough boss prepares to face former club Cardiff

Boro have kept back-to-back clean sheets against Reading and Bristol City and faced just one shot on target in the two games.

Yet Bettinelli’s role shouldn’t be downplayed, and the keeper can regularly be heard barking out instructions to the players in front of him.

The 28-year-old signed for Boro on a season-long loan from Fulham in September and Warnock is delighted to have him on board.

When asked about his goalkeeper ahead of Saturday’s trip to Cardiff, Warnock joked: “I saw him yesterday walking the dogs with his missus, and I said to him, ‘Bloody hell Marcus – the last two games, your missus could have been in goal’. But I told him that won’t be the case on Saturday!

“He’s vocal, and you need that. His presence is good, on and off the field. I think his presence has been felt, and I’m really pleased to have him.

“If you’ve got a talker, it doesn’t half help with the lads at the back. Marcus is naturally talkative, he talks all the time, and that just helps and gives you the confidence. I think it’s brought the best out of the players."

“Sometimes, it’s more difficult when you haven’t had a save to make, the concentration levels. There are situations where you haven’t had much to do, then all of a sudden you have to pull us out of the clarts.

“It’s the concentration levels he’s got to work on at the moment. He hasn’t had a lot to do in those two games, but I think that will change tomorrow. I think he’ll have quite a lot to do tomorrow.”

Tuesday’s 1-0 win over Bristol City moved Boro into the top half of the Championship, and Warnock believes his side can push for a play-off spot if he can keep players fit.

“I know what I’ve got here, but I said to them, ‘You’ve all got to play to the top level of your ability’,” said Warnock.

“I said, ‘If you can do that, and maybe improve just a little bit, then I think we can be in and amongst it. We can be in the top ten, pushing up to the top six’. And to be fair to them so far, they’ve done exactly that.

"I say they’ve surprised me, they haven’t actually surprised me, but what they’ve done is listened and their natural ability has come out in each position they play.

“What I wanted them to be good at in each individual position, they’ve actually done that.

“Then because they’re playing well, the confidence comes and they do other things too. That then breeds more confidence and the whole thing builds – I’ve enjoyed seeing them develop as a team."

Boro will now face five games in the space of just 15 days before the next international break at the start of November.

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