Several Middlesbrough players have looked far from their best in the early stages of 2024/25.
Middlesbrough take on Stoke City in a Championship clash this coming Saturday and will be desperate to pick up three points.
After suffering defeat in the Tees-Wear derby last weekend, Michael Carrick and his men have slipped down to 12th in the Championship table.
There are still plenty of games to play this term and Boro’s promotion hopes are not completely dead in the water just yet but several of their key players need to start improving.
Neto Borges was ‘exposed versus Sunderland, giving Carrick a real problem when it comes to Middlesbrough’s left-back position.
Isaiah Jones has been ‘wasteful’ for the Teessiders so far this season as well and could now lose his starting berth for the weekend’s clash.
Another player who has underperformed in the first six weeks of the current campaign is Hayden Hackney.
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Why Hayden Hackney is struggling at Middlesbrough this season
The Boro academy product, who was previously dubbed ‘outstanding’ by Jonathan Woodgate as per Teesside Live, was one of the club’s best performers last season and scored a huge goal in the Carabao Cup win over Chelsea.
His excellent form saw Hackney garnering transfer interest from Tottenham Hotspur over the summer but he was kept at the Riverside Stadium.
The midfielder has been far from his best this season, however. But now, journalist Dominic Shaw, speaking on the You Are My Boro podcast, has explained why Hackney is struggling.
He said: “I think one of the problems he’s had is, so often in games, he’s getting the ball and he’s been created by two banks of four or five players in front of him and he’s having to pick the lock.
“And that’s when it’s sideways because he can’t find the pass. Well, that’s not when Hackney’s at his best.
“Hackney’s at his best when he’s driving, when he’s travelling with the ball, when he’s spraying passes around.
“He’s probably a victim of the way teams have set up and frustrated Boro, which again, is another challenge for Carrick to try and overcome.”
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How Michael Carrick can fix Hayden Hackney problem
Teams have and are going to continue sitting very deep when they play Middlesbrough this season, which is one of the main reasons for Hackney’s drop in form.
As Carrick can do nothing about that, he will have to find another way to get the best out of the England U21 international.
One thing the Boro boss could change is where he starts the midfielder. Hackney operates alongside Aidan Morris at the base of midfield but given his attacking qualities, the 22-year-old could do a job slightly further forward in the number 10 role.
Alternatively, once Jonny Howson is back from injury, Carrick could tweak his formation and play a 4-3-3 with the Boro captain sitting and both Morris and Hackney playing ahead of him as number eights.
This would force Tommy Conway out of the team but could allow Morris and Hackney more creative freedom in the final third.