Burnley 1-1 Middlesbrough: Dijksteel strike denies hosts top stop

Middlesbrough denied Burnley a chance to go top of the Championship table by holding them to a 1-1 draw at Turf Moor.

Scott Parker’s side could have put pressure on Sheffield United with a win, but now find themselves one point behind the leaders, who face West Brom on Sunday.

The visitors broke the deadlock in the 13th minute when Daniel Barlaser released Anfernee Dijksteel, with the Middlesbrough right-back dinking cleverly over James Trafford.

But Burnley drew level before the interval when Connor Roberts’ looped strike from distance caught Seny Dieng off his line.

Burnley’s hopes of building on the equaliser after the break did not materialise as Boro created the better chances, with Tommy Conway and Delano Burgzorg denied by Trafford early in the second half.

Middlesbrough, meanwhile, sit in fifth place and are one point above Watford, who have a game in hand.

The points are shared at Turf Moor #BURMID #UTB pic.twitter.com/AjlytDXT4B

— Middlesbrough FC (@Boro) December 6, 2024

Data Debrief: Burnley defence finally breached

Burnley had kept a clean sheet in each of their last five Championship matches heading into this contest, but that run was brought to an end by Michael Carrick’s side on Friday.

Parker’s team attempted 15 shots in the game, which was five more than their opponents, but only managed an expected goals (xG) total of 0.67, while Boro managed an xG of 0.88.

However, the Clarets are still unbeaten in six league matches (W4 D2) and have the best defence in the league – conceding just seven goals in 19 matches. The result also meant that they are now unbeaten in their last six league meetings against Boro (W3 D3).