Middlesbrough vs Norwich: Hellberg Demands Home Support
Kim Hellberg can finally breathe Teesside air again.
After a gruelling run of five away trips in six games – including a draining Carabao Cup exit at Crystal Palace in midweek – the Middlesbrough head coach returns to the Riverside on Saturday demanding that the home crowd turn Norwich’s visit into another occasion to remember.
Back to the Riverside, back to the noise
Boro have lived out of a suitcase for much of the early season, three games in the space of a week on the road testing legs and minds. Now comes a different kind of examination: Norwich City, resurgent after a shaky start, under a coach Hellberg respects as much as any in the division.
He hasn’t forgotten what this fixture can feel like. The last time Norwich came to Teesside, a Hayden Hackney winner sent Middlesbrough joint top of the Championship and the Riverside into uproar.
“I remember that game last season, it was a brilliant atmosphere and I remember the last five minutes were absolutely crazy,” Hellberg told BBC Radio Tees.
Those closing moments have clearly stayed with him. So has the sound.
He wants that again. Maybe more.
“The atmosphere in all our home games has been very good,” he said. “After everything that happened last season, everyone has got stronger together. Everyone has raised their level – players, supporters, coaches – everyone together to go to a higher level.”
That sense of shared recovery underpins his message. The Swede knows Norwich will not roll over, so he leans into the one advantage he can try to shape before a ball is kicked.
“We need the supporters being on our side and doing everything they can to help get us over the line against a very good opposition.”
Respect for Clement and a “very good football game”
Hellberg’s praise for Philippe Clement is unforced and specific. Norwich’s head coach walked into trouble last season and dragged his team clear; that kind of work doesn’t go unnoticed in the managers’ fraternity.
“Philippe Clement has done a brilliant job, he's a very good coach, builds a strong and well-coached team,” Hellberg said. “He turned the season around for Norwich last year – they were in danger when he arrived and have built through that. He's a top coach and will give us a lot of different and difficult challenges.”
So this is no routine homecoming. Norwich arrive with momentum, structure and a clear identity. Boro counter with their own.
“I think it is going to be a very good football game, two good teams against each other, brilliant kick-off time on a Saturday and we are looking forward to it.”
The stage is set: a Saturday slot, a restless home crowd, two sides that want the ball and believe they belong in the top half of the table at the very least.
Lankshear’s impact and a new dressing-room edge
While the fixture and the atmosphere dominate the build-up, one individual continues to reshape Boro’s attacking threat. Will Lankshear did not take the Championship Player of the Month award on Friday, but his numbers speak loudly enough: seven goals in eight games since arriving from Tottenham in the summer.
Hellberg’s admiration stretches beyond the penalty area.
“I think he has done brilliantly, he's a good boy and has come into the team perfectly,” the head coach said. “He works very hard on and off the pitch and that's the culture we are trying to create here.”
That word – culture – is where Hellberg lingers. Lankshear’s start is a symbol of something broader in the squad.
“I have seen a massive difference in the group, how they have progressed from the first day here to how we have gone forward and take care of each other in a very good way.
“I have so many good players here who compete in a brilliant way to try and help Middlesbrough win games and Will is one of them and it helps when you score a lot of goals.”
Competition, cohesion, and a young striker in form: it is the kind of mix that can turn a noisy home game into a statement. Now it’s over to the Riverside to decide just how loud this chapter of Boro’s season will be.
