Middlesbrough faced off with Derby County in a Championship clash recently.
The Boro-Derby rivalry has been ongoing off the field for some time thanks to Middlesbrough owner Steve Gibson.
The Rams spent the previous two campaigns in League One but after securing promotion in 2023/24, their on-field battle has once again begun.
Middlesbrough had an excellent start to the campaign, picking up wins over Swansea City and Leeds United to kick-off their campaign.
In turn, Boro were expected to dominate a Derby County side who were convincingly beaten 4-2 by Blackburn Rovers on the opening day.
The Teessiders did indeed dominate at Pride Park on Saturday, coming away with 20 goal attempts and 70 percent of the possession.
However, when all was said and done, Middlesbrough lost 1-0 to Derby – a shock result for fans of both clubs.
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Nathaniel Mendez-Laing responds to Luke Ayling message
The Rams’ winner came in the 14th minute after a misplaced backpass from Isaiah Jones.
Jones’ attempted pass to Seny Dieng was quickly intercepted by Nathaniel Mendez-Laing, who rounded the Boro keeper to make it 1-0.
Middlesbrough fans should already be familiar with the 32-year-old and his blistering pace after his brief stint at the Riverside between February 2021 – July 2021.
He scored one and assisted one in nine appearances during his short stint at the club and has now cost Boro a huge game.
In the aftermath of the defeat, Luke Ayling took to Instagram to pen a message to Middlesbrough fans.
He wrote: “Disappointing result Saturday. We learn from our mistakes and move on.”
One of the pictures the right-back posted was an image of he and Mendez-Laing battling it out at Pride Park.
The Derby forward seemingly took this is an invitation to respond to Ayling, commenting on the post.
He wrote: “Nice pic at the end”, followed by a laughing face emoji.
Middlesbrough need to bounce back from Derby defeat
Middlesbrough are now in danger of repeating the same fate they suffered in 2023/24.
Boro missed out on the playoffs by just four points last term, in part due to their awful start to the campaign.
Michael Carrick watched his side fail to win their opening five league matches of the campaign, a run that ultimately cost them a top six finish.
Middlesbrough have already beaten Swansea this season but after that showing against Derby, alarm bells are likely ringing among the Boro fanbase that their side have not learned from last season’s errors.
The Teessiders return to action on August 24th versus another newly promoted team, Portsmouth.
Anything but a win from that meeting could end up coming back to bite Boro come May next year.