West Brom 0 Middlesbrough 1 - Report

Middlesbrough midfielder Hayden Hackney struck a low winner from range 17 minutes from time - the first goal conceded by the hosts this season - as Carlos Corberan's men tasted successive reverses.

It was not the desired outcome on the night Albion, who remain in mourning from Saturday's tragedy, honoured their supporter who lost his life in tragic circumstances. It was an evening when the result was secondary, almost an irrelevance, and there was no arguing Boro were value for the win.

Very little came off for Albion from an attacking perspective. The Baggies looked disjointed at times and lacked the creative touch and urgency to break through. Both those that started in attack, and replacements from the bench, struggled.

There was a suspicion Corberan may rotate his ranks for a first midweek league clash of the season and the head coach opted for two alterations.

One carried some surprise as club captain Jed Wallace replaced Tom Fellows for a first start of the season. The other, as expected, saw ex-Boro loan midfielder Alex Mowatt return for Ousmane Diakite.

Grady Diangana and Gianluca Frabotta were both missing from the bench.

An unconventional start to the contest saw assistant referee Rob Smith replaced after just six minutes. Referee David Webb's deputy appeared unstable on his feet and was wheeled away on a stretcher after lengthy treatment. Fourth official Jacob Miles took the flag and it is understood Premier League official and Albion fan Eddie Smart emerged from the crowd as stand-in fourth official.

That eight or nine minute delay did not help a contest that was slow to get started anyway.

The hosts were better after the restart and dominated the ball, with a few forays down the flanks, and Josh Maja unusually missed a clear chance to play Wallace in on goal. But potent Boro caught the eye with raids of their own and made the first openings.

Former Baggies youngster Finn Azes, released by Albion in 2021, was lively and drew a save from Alex Palmer. The rebound dropped to Riley McGree whose wasteful rebound flew over.

Palmer was at his best minutes later to keep out striker Emmanuel Latte Lath's header. Palmer got down quickly for a strong left-handed stop.

Albion struggled to create and were more often than not guilty of not moving the ball quickly enough. Attacking midfielder Azaz was sharp at the other end. A quick give-and-go with Hayden Hackney saw Azaz curl a low striker narrowly wide of the far post.

The hosts' biggest moment of the first period came and went after 40 minutes. Having lost the ball John Swift did well to win it back. He fed Maja in space in the box who, instead of shooting, opted to square for Wallace but the captain could only side-foot at keeper Seny Dieng from 10 yards.

Wallace had another sighter in eight minutes of stoppages but curled wide of Dieng's right post after cutting in on his weaker left foot. Maja had fed Karlan Grant for a quick break from Corberan's men.

Corberan neglected the idea of half-time substitutions after a low-key first half but it took just seven minutes of the second half for Fellows to replace Wallace. Albion, and through Swift in the early part of the second period, were guilty of sloppy passes.

All four corners of The Hawthorns, as well as players and officials, joined in a minute's applause on 57 minutes in memory of Mark Townsend, the Albion fan and Brummie Road season ticket holder who died as a result of a medical emergency during Saturday's game at Sheffield Wednesday. It was a wonderful tribute.

On the pitch, visiting skipper Luke Ayling nodded a corner narrowly wide of the upright after the hour and the visitors grew further as the second half wore on.

The busy Palmer made another top stop to deny the lively Doak from a narrow angle before Latte Lath headed just wide from a corner.

Corberan turned to Jayson Molumby and Mikey Johnston for extra legs and quality.

It didn't have the desired effect as The Hawthorns grew edgy and Boro grew in confidence. It was no surprise when the visitors managed to break the deadlock.

Doak fed McGree who teed up Hackney 18 yards out. The impressive midfielder stroked a low finish into the far corner out of Palmer's reach to silence the stadium.

Corberan's men had time to rescue things and rued an opening unusually wasted by Maja from Mowatt's wonderful cross. The red-hot striker couldn't turn home on the stretch with Dieng stranded.

Maja struck the side netting from a narrow angle but Boro were good value for their result and might've had a second but for sub Delano Burgzorg's poor miss.

Teams

Albion (4-3-3): Palmer; Furlong, Ajayi, Bartley, Heggem (Styles, 78); Mowatt, Racic (Molumby, 63), Swift (Johnston, 63); Wallace (c) (Fellows, 53), Grant (Dobbin, 78), Maja.

Subs not used: Wildsmith, Holgate, Diakite, Cole.

Boro (4-2-3-1): Dieng; Ayling (c), Van Den Berg, Edmundson, Borges; Hackney, Morris; Doak (Jones, 83), Azaz, McGree (McCormick, 90); Latte Lath (Burgzorg, 76).

Subs not used: Brynn, Barlaser, Dijksteel, Hamilton, Forss, Hunt.

Attendance: 23,769 (1,076 Boro fans)

Referee: David Webb