Middlesbrough won four of their last six home Championship games last season
Boro have won five of the last six meetings between the sides
Recommended Bet: Middlesbrough to win
Middlesbrough and Swansea, who were separated by just one place and three points in last season's standings, face off at the Riverside Stadium as the Championship swings back into action on Saturday.
Rob Edwards was brought in to replace Michael Carrick on Teesside after a dismal end to the last campaign saw Boro finish 10th.
The former Luton boss has been implementing fresh tactics during a pre-season programme that did not yield a win or any noticeable improvement in terms of Boro’s defensive frailties.
Meanwhile, Swansea lost their last three friendly matches and appear to lack a clinical finisher again after entrusting the head coach’s role to Alan Sheehan on a permanent basis.
Team news
Middlesbrough look set to be without six first-team players for the opening game with Darragh Lenihan the latest casualty added to the list after he missed last Saturday’s friendly against Deportivo La Coruna.
Goalkeeper Seny Dieng is a long-term absentee as he recovers from Achilles surgery, meaning Sol Brynn is set to start between the posts.
Alex Bangura’s hamstring issue means he won’t be ready for Swansea either, while there has been no timeframe put on exactly when George Edmundson, Finn Azaz and Riley McGree would return.
Edwards is likely to include Hayden Hackney in midfield, despite reports that he could be on the move before the transfer window closes, and last season’s top scorer Tommy Conway up front.
As for Swansea, striker Zan Vipotnik has made some progress from the toe injury which kept him out of last weekend’s home friendly against Lorient.
Captain Ben Cabango is unlikely to travel after missing a large chunk of the Swans’ pre-season programme.
Sheehan will be pinning his hopes on Ronald and Liam Cullen in attack, while the likes of Josh Key and Cameron Burgess are trusted to keep Boro’s creative threats at bay.
Filip Lissah and Ricardo Santos will be assessed ahead of the clash at the Riverside Stadium.
The stats
Middlesbrough have won five of the last six clashes between the clubs, including a 1-0 home victory on the opening weekend last season.
Boro have won each of the last five head-to-head meetings at the Riverside Stadium.
Five of the last eight games between these sides have ended with under 2.5 goals scored.
The latest Middlesbrough vs Swansea odds are available on LiveScore Bet
Prediction
Swansea were sloppy in their 3-1 friendly defeat to Lorient on Saturday and any repeat of that display could spell trouble against a Boro side who are showing signs of improvement under Edwards.
There is more of an emphasis on pressing and getting the ball forward quickly at the Riverside Stadium and that approach could bring dividends against the Swans.
Sheehan’s defence, missing the presence of skipper Cabango, looked low on confidence when shipping three goals at the weekend.
And they missed a couple of decent goalscoring chances, too, which may indicate the problems are spreading to other areas of the team.
Boro have a good recent record against Swansea and a superb one when the Welsh side travel to Teesside, which strengthens the belief that they will begin the campaign with a positive result.
