It is tempting to put two and two together and maybe make five, Boro - Mido = happier Boro? Alves and Tuncay both looked a lot brighter anyway.
Rumours abound as to the Egyptian striker's negative influence on the team and a Mido-less dressing room may very well be Boro's first step to recovery.
And Alves continues to score! The Brazilian goal machine has joined the Boro fight back and although he still misses the easier chances, he is finally providing us with what we need most, goals.
This particular strike was beautiful, the goal of a proven scorer and hopefully after his earlier incarnations of 'the new Juninho' and 'record waste of money' , 'proven goal scorer' will be Alves' next role at the Boro.
Tuncay set up Alves for the goal with a superb cross but looks in need of a goal of his own to increase his confidence. Also I would like to have seen him follow up as had Alves missed the chance there was no one anywhere near the box for the follow-up.
However Alves looks doubtful for Wednesday having limped off and Tuncay may be paired with new signing Marlon King. An instant understanding between the two would be nice but is unlikely to happen.
Boro, of course, conceded the obligatory goal, Brad Jones for the most part did well in place of Ross Turnbull but was beaten by a Sam Vokes header.
Adam Johhson brought his shooting (if not scoring) boots and you suspect if he carries on having a go, it is only a matter of time before some of his efforts find the net.
Emnes has not impressed me up until yesterday. Perhaps I, and others, have judged the young Dutchman too harshly in comparison with fellow summer signing Didier Digard, but Emnes has failed to make much of an impact on the few runs out he has had. Granted he has not had many opportunities but in this League you have got to take your chances and impress. Emnes finally did so with a good goal to secure our place in the next round of the FA Cup.
Now it is back to the league fight, we face Chelsea on Wednesday and unfortunately the Blues seem to have regained their form. Meanwhile, we were already down to the bare bones of our squad and missing the mid-section and now we are trying to built a skeleton side without all the pieces.
The return of Justin Hoyte is a big boost for Boro, as is the re-emergence of Matty Bates and his willingness to pitch in wherever needed. Boro's survival will depend on the team, manager and Chairman included, pulling together, throwing everything at every opponent and generally fighting for our lives. Time will tell whether we've got the stomach for it and we may lose even more legs in the process, but it is all on the line now and as muscles stretch, nerves must be steadied, minds kept clear and hearts strong. Southgate's red army marches on.
First published on www.newsoftheworld.co.uk/sport/fanzone - Jan 09
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