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Second-placed Boro close gap on Championship leaders Coventry to seven points Strelec steers Boro into ninth-minute lead, Gilbert doubles advantage Whittaker curls in fine third, Mc Gree makes it four before half-time Gelhardt wins and converts penalty to pull one back for ninth-placed Hull Kick-off delayed by 15 minutes due to weather and travel issues Alex Hoad and Jamie Riley Morgan Whittaker WOW. Hull again cough up the ball in the centre circle, Alex Gilbert pressing Regan Slater into a slip, allowing Gilbert to drive forward and spread the ball to Morgan Whittaker on the right of the box. He opens his body up and uses the defender as a shield to bend the ball powerfully high inside the far post with unsighted Ivor Pandur given no chance. Boro have blown this game wide open in the space of two minutes. Alex Gilbert It's happened again! Alex Gilbert got the winner here on New Year's Day. He hasn't made a single first-team appearance this season, but Kim Hellberg saw enough in training in his first week to chuck him in the XI tonight, and how he has repaid him. More slack defending from the hosts plays its part as Tommy Conway is gifted possession and is able to drive in from the left of the box and lay the ball off to the lurking Gilbert 20 yards out to fizz a low side-footed shot in off the post past the despairing dive of Ivor Pandur. What a finish. And how he's celebrated it. Hull City 0-1 Middlesbrough Semi Ajayi is the latest Hull player to have his blushes spared. The defender dawdles in possession on the edge of the box, has his pocket picked and David Strelec is threaded through, only to drag wide of the far post. Hull City 0-1 Middlesbrough Rob Law Commentator for BBC Radio Tees Both sides are playing some really good football at times but you can see that the conditions are playing a bit of a part in some of the mistakes being made. Hull City 0-1 Middlesbrough What a mix-up between Hull keeper Ivor Pandur and John Egan. Egan wants his keeper to come and claim a bouncing ball on the edge of the box and tries to hold off goalscorer David Strelec but the keeper is hesitant and eventually slides out only to drop the ball as he collides with Egan in a heap. Thankfully for the hosts the ball rolls beyond Strelec for a corner and the hosts manage to clear it. Use yellow button on page, #bbcefl on X, via Whats App on 03301231826 or text 81111 (UK only, standard message rates apply) Hull need Mc Burnie on. He will be the needed threat. Gary Bower, Gosport Hull City 0-1 Middlesbrough Mike White Commentator on BBC Radio Humberside There is still a very long way to go for Hull, but you just want to see a bit more of a response to going behind. Everything that Boro do seems to be very tidy and clean. Hull City 0-1 Middlesbrough Peter Swan Former Hull City player on BBC Radio Humberside Hull need to be careful because some of these quick breaks from Boro so far are quite concerning. You can see that they're a very good team. Hull City 0-1 Middlesbrough Another lovely move from Boro, patient this time, shifting it right for Callum Brittain who whips a cross towards the edge of the area where the onrushing Riley Mc Gree manages to control on his chest before lashing in a first-time shot on the bounce which is always rising over Ivor Pandur's crossbar. Would have been some goal if he'd kept that down. Hull City 0-1 Middlesbrough We've already seen this gusting wind and rain are making conditions challenging, to say the least. All a little bitty at the moment, stop-start, in and out of play, but understandable, to be honest. Hull City 0-1 Middlesbrough Neil Maddison Former Middlesbrough midfielder on BBC Tees Hull have played really well so far, they have had plenty of the ball and dictated play so far but it was a really good, well taken goal for Strelec. I am really liking the look of David Strelec and Tommy Conway up top together, we haven't seen that before but it is working well. Hull City 0-1 Middlesbrough Twinkling toes from Hayden Hackney threaten to find a way through the City defence but they just about hold firm. Boro come back with Hackney playing Tommy Conway in down the left channel and the forward hits the deck under pressure from a defender. He appeals for a penalty, as do the travelling fans, but ref Dean Whitestone says no. Boro definitely on top in the final third at present. .. Use yellow button on page, #bbcefl on X, via Whats App on 03301231826 or text 81111 (UK only, standard message rates apply) I think we have a great chance to be in top two. Hellberg will get the front four firing soon. Tonight would be perfect. Andy Davidson, Aberdeen Getting a bit annoyed about everyone going on about Coventry - no one wins the league in December. Graham, UK Hull City 0-1 Middlesbrough The away fans are in full voice after that opener. .. they have seen their heroes win just once in their past seven away games and it's a filthy night with travel chaos everywhere, so they may as well enjoy themselves. Hull City 0-1 Middlesbrough Peter Swan Former Hull City player on BBC Radio Humberside The goal has all come from a Hull City attack that went wrong. It was a really good, quick move from Boro. The flag has stayed down which I'm not too sure about, but it is a really good finish as well. David Strelec Boro strike first and what a finish. .. The visitors break break down the left thanks to a brilliant through ball from Hayden Hackney to Riley Mc Gree and his cross into the mixer is deflected by a flying backheel from Morgan Whittaker. It falls into the path of David Strelec, who is being played onside by Amir Hadziahmetovic, just, and he spins and lashes high into the top corner off-balance. No chance for Ivor Pandur. Kim Hellberg's honeymoon shows signs of continuing. .. Hull City 0-0 Middlesbrough Boro looking just a bit shaky at the back and a ball into the box deflects towards Kyle Joseph lurking neat the penalty spot. He thinks he's got less time than he has and tries to nod it down to a team-mate rather than trapping it on his chest and seeking to get a shot off. Hull City 0-0 Middlesbrough Interesting to see how Kim Hellberg's side shape-up - it's definitely a different system from Rob Edwards, no three at the back (perhaps in part due to a lack of defenders). Alex Gilbert and Alex Bangura have not started since 2024 until this week so have clearly earned their spots by performing in training. Morgan Whittaker gets the first glimpse of goal of the game but his effort is too close to Ivor Pandur in the Tigers goal. Hull City 0-0 Middlesbrough Nearly a nightmare for Alfie Jones on his return to the MKM just a minute in. He's the last man as he sees an attempted pass charged down and has to dash back to prevent Enis Destan a clear run on goal. A smattering of boos for Jones, who played more than 190 games for the Tigers from 2020-25. Tough crowd. Hull City 0-0 Middlesbrough Away we go. .. will the game be as wild as the weather? If so we're in for a treat. .. The Tigers are in their usual amber and black while Boro are in what their fans call their 'Squid Game' change strip of green and white. This was the first time Middlesbrough had scored four goals in the first half of a match since a 5-1 home win over Norwich City in April 2023 Promotion-chasing Middlesbrough inflicted an emphatic defeat on Hull City after scoring four first-half goals. The kick-off was delayed by 15 minutes as heavy rain and strong winds affected traffic conditions, but the visitors were totally unperturbed by their late arrival to the ground and made a storming start. David Strelec gave them an early lead with a composed finish and Alex Gilbert doubled their advantage with a crisp 20-yarder, before Morgan Whittaker lashed home from just inside the area and Riley Mc Gree made it 4-0 from close range a minute before the break. Shell-shocked Hull replied in the 62nd minute as Joe Gelhardt scored his 10th goal of the season from the penalty spot after being felled in the area, but there was never any chance of a comeback. Victory moved Boro five points clear of third-placed Millwall, although they are still seven points behind runaway leaders Coventry City. The Tigers, who have scored the second most goals in the league, but also conceded the second highest, remain one point outside the play-off spots in ninth. This comfortable win made it two wins from as many games for Boro's new Swedish boss Kim Hellberg. His side completely outclassed the woeful hosts in the first half to leave the match over as a contest before the interval. Strelec finished smartly after Whittaker got first contact on a Mc Gree cross from the left and the ball landed at the Slovakian international's feet. The Tigers did not manage a shot of any sort in a horrible opening period and fell two behind when Gilbert, making his first appearance of the season, hit a quality low strike beyond Ivor Pandur in the home goal after lacklustre defending. Gilbert then set up Whittaker to cut inside from the right and fire a third minutes later, although the Tigers were perhaps a little unfortunate as the Boro midfielder may have fouled Regan Slater in winning the ball on halfway. The passive hosts could have no complaints at the fourth goal, though, as they allowed the visitors to pass through them with ease and Mc Gree was able to score at the second attempt. Boro, understandably, dropped off in the second half and Gelhardt pulled a goal back after visiting keeper Sol Brynn caught him in the area, although the contact seemed minimal. Middlesbrough will look to build on this when they travel to out-of-sorts Charlton on Tuesday, 9 December (19: 45 GMT). Hull, who would have gone third with victory on Friday night, will aim to put this dismal showing behind them when they host Wrexham on Wednesday, 10 December (20: 00 GMT). This video can not be played Hull City boss Sergej Jakirovic told BBC Radio Humberside: "It's very simple, we gave away a lot like it's Christmas today. We were very bad in possession and open play. There were so many mistakes I could not believe it. "It was a bad day in the office. Middlesbrough were much, much better than us. "This was my worst game since I was here. "I knew it would be tough because they are a very good team but I was thinking that we would give more resistance. We gave away too much and in this league that is goals. " This video can not be played Middlesbrough boss Kim Hellberg told BBC Radio Tees: "The players' performance today was absolutely brilliant. "We executed the plan to make it difficult for Hull. We were very good at playing where the space was, if it was behind them we used that space or in front of the backline and we were good on the counter and pressing. [On Alex Gilbert's first game for the club since January] "He's a very clever footballer and he's very good at taking information quickly and adapting to that on the pitch. He's good on the ball and in the duels. I've seen the good things he's done in training and I gave him the opportunity today. "I'm looking forward to a good weekend I must say that - I'll watch a lot of football tomorrow and then back in training on Sunday. " After the opportunity to rate players has closed, the score displayed represents the average from all the submissions by BBC Sport users. Comments can not be loaded To load Comments you need to enable Java Script in your browser Last Updated 5th December 2025 at 22: 06 Please Note: All times UK. Tables are subject to change. The BBC is not responsible for any changes that may be made. Manager: Sergej Jakirovic Formation: 4 - 2 - 3 - 1 Manager: Kim Hellberg Formation: 4 - 4 - 2 Manager: Sergej Jakirovic Formation: 4 - 2 - 3 - 1 Manager: Kim Hellberg Formation: 4 - 4 - 2 Championship All competitions All competitions All competitions Hull have won just one of their last six league games against Middlesbrough (D1 L4), a 2-1 away win in December 2023. Following a 1-0 win in this exact fixture last season, Middlesbrough are looking to win consecutive away league games against Hull for the first time. Hull City have won six of their last 10 league games (D1 L3), with only league leaders Coventry City winning more since the start of October (10). Having won their first two Championship away games this season, Middlesbrough have since won just one of their last seven on the road (D4 L2). Joe Gelhardt has been involved in nine goals in his last nine Championship appearances (7 goals, 2 assists), netting the winning goal in all five of Hull City’s victories in that run. Copyright © 2025 BBC. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.