Middlesbrough are back in Championship action on Saturday afternoon against Bristol City.
With the October international break now all but over, Championship football returns this weekend.
Middlesbrough will welcome Bristol City to the Riverside Stadium for a 3pm kick-off as they aim to get back to winning ways.
The Teessiders were close to making it three wins from three prior to the October break but fell to defeat in their last Championship fixture.
Middlesbrough lost 2-1 to Watford at Vicarage Road, blowing a 1-0 lead given to them by George Edmundson in the 54th minute.
That defeat has seen Michael Carrick’s men slip down to ninth in the Championship table but they are still only two points off the play-off places and could climb back into the top-six if results go their way this weekend.
Bristol City, meanwhile, are currently 16th in the division having picked up 11 points from their opening nine matches.
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Middlesbrough vs Bristol City score prediction
While Bristol are only three points off Middlesbrough in the table right now, the Robins have struggled to pick up wins.
They have drawn five and won just twice, with some fans likely expecting a tight game in the North East as a result.
However, speaking on the Championship Check-In podcast, EFL pundit Sam Parkin has now predicted the result and is not backing it to be a tight game when these two sides meet.
Instead, Parkin has opted for Middlesbrough to turn over Bristol and secure a 3-1 win.
He said: “No idea, it’s a toss of a coin. It’s quite fun doing it here at the start of the week when we’ve no idea what injuries there’s going to be or what the team news is going to look like.
“I’ll take a 3-1 Middlesbrough win.”
Middlesbrough unwanted record against Bristol City
Parkin’s prediction is pretty optimistic for a number of reasons, including the fact Middlesbrough are yet to score more than two goals in a Championship game this season.
It is also worth pointing out that Bristol have become something of a bogey team for Boro in recent years.
Last season saw the Robins do the league double over the Teessiders, picking up a 3-2 win at home and a 2-1 victory at the Riverside.
Boro’s struggles against Bristol City date back beyond the 2023/24 season though as they have secured just one win from their previous seven meetings in the Championship.
Should Carrick’s men suffer defeat once more on Saturday, it could be a big blow for their play-off hopes.