Both teams have scored in five of Boro’s last seven fixtures
Eight of Southampton’s last nine matches have seen both teams score
Recommended bet: Both teams to score
Middlesbrough and Southampton each finished on 80 points from 46 matches to secure their place in the Championship play-offs, but they ended the regular season in contrasting form.
Boro had been in automatic promotion contention for much of the campaign but just two wins from their final 10 matches proved to be costly.
The same cannot be said for Southampton, however, as they were transformed by Tonda Eckert’s November appointment and they went unbeaten in their final 19 matches to make up for a sluggish start.
The Saints also reached the FA Cup semi-finals to highlight the quality that they possess and they are a much different team to the one that suffered a 4-0 defeat against Boro at the Riverside in January.
Southampton won seven of their final eight away league games, but Boro will be hoping to take some inspiration from their 5-1 rout of Watford in their final home fixture of the regular campaign.
The latest Middlesbrough vs Southampton odds are available on LiveScore Bet
Team news
Middlesbrough's star man Hayden Hackney has been sidelined since March and he is doubtful, while the play-offs are expected to come too soon for Alfie Jones.
Alex Bangura is in line to return for this tie and Alan Browne should overcome a minor issue, but Darrah Lenihan is a long-term absentee.
Southampton midfielder Flynn Downes returns from suspension but Kuryu Matsuki, Alex McCarthy, Mads Roerslev Rasmussen and Jack Stephens remain sidelined.
The latest Middlesbrough vs Southampton odds are available on LiveScore Bet
The stats
Middlesbrough have won only two of their last 10 league matches.
Southampton are unbeaten in 19 league matches and they have won seven of their last eight away games in the Championship.
Both teams have scored in eight of Southampton’s last nine matches.
Both teams have scored in five of Boro’s last seven fixtures.
Five of the last seven head-to-head meetings between this pair have seen both teams score.
Two of the last three meetings have ended in 1-1 draws.
Five of Middlesbrough's last seven Championship matches have gone over 2.5 goals.
The latest Middlesbrough vs Southampton odds are available on LiveScore Bet
Prediction
A positive result means more to Middlesbrough being the home team than it does to Southampton and that should make for an entertaining encounter.
Boro will be trying to take inspiration from their 4-0 win at home to Southampton in January but the Saints have turned themselves inside out since then, with their only defeat in 23 outings coming against Manchester City in the semi-finals of the FA Cup.
Southampton have been blazing a scoring trail and have been rampant on the road, winning seven of their last eight away games.
However, defensively there are still limitations that Boro can look to exploit, with both teams having scored in eight of Southampton’s last nine fixtures.
Boro did defeat Watford 5-1 in their final home game of the regular season and they have failed to score in only one of their last seven outings to offer some hope.
Back both teams to score at 8/11 with LiveScore Bet
The latest Middlesbrough vs Southampton odds are available on LiveScore Bet
