Michael Carrick has been offered some advice on his team selection ahead of Sunderland vs Middlesbrough.
Boro are back in Championship action this weekend, facing off with bitter rivals Sunderland at the Stadium of Light.
A draw is predicted for Sunderland vs Middlesbrough but Michael Carrick will be desperate for his side to pick up the three points.
The Teessiders excelled in this fixture last season, coming away with a 4-0 win. But Middlesbrough have not beaten Sunderland at the Stadium of Light in two games in a row for 18 years now.
The Black Cats are also in much better form than Boro right now and are only one point off top spot in the Championship table while Carrick’s men are languishing in 10th place.
Middlesbrough have been warned a tough test awaits them versus Sunderland and Carrick will have to get his team selection spot on for the tie.
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Michael Carrick told to drop ‘faultless’ Middlesbrough star vs Sunderland
Amid an injury crisis at centre-back, Boro signed George Edmundson on deadline day last month.
The Ipswich Town loanee made his debut when Middlesbrough drew 1-1 with Preston North End at the Riverside last week.
Edmundson, previously called ‘faultless by Steven Gerrard, performed fairly well in that clash but could lose his place in the starting line-up this weekend.
Carrick provided an injury update on Rav van den Berg on Thursday, hinting he was close to a return.
Now, speaking on the You Are My Boro podcast, journalist Scott Wilson has urged Carrick to start the Dutchman ahead of Edmundson if he is fit enough.
He said: “If Van den Berg’s fit, after all Edmondson had a perfectly fine debut, unless Van den Berg isn’t fit or only just fit and hasn’t really trained.
“If Van ben Berg has trained a reasonable amount this week, I think he goes straight back in the team because he’s Boro’s best defender and he was starting to get a really nice relationship with Matt Clarke in the back half of last season and the very early days of this season.
“I just struggle to see if Van den Berg is ready, that he doesn’t go straight back into the team.”
Why Rav van den Berg must start ahead of George Edmundson for Middlesbrough vs Sunderland
Edmundson didn’t really put a foot wrong in the 1-1 draw last time out but the 27-year-old should be dropped this weekend.
The Tees-Wear derby is perhaps the biggest game of Boro’s season and they need to be at full strength to stand any chance of picking up a win.
Middlesbrough lost just one of their last 12 Championship fixtures in 2023/24, in no small part due to the defensive partnership formed between Van den Berg and Matt Clarke.
Clarke has impressed for Middlesbrough once more in the current campaign and he should be reunited with his previous centre-back partner at the Stadium of Light.
As Wilson mentioned above, the 20-year-old is Boro’s best defender and should be starting this type of match.
Edmundson is a solid rotation option and his late addition over the summer was a smart bit of business, but he should not be in from the off if Van den Berg is close to being fully fit.