Rovers have been warned about the threat of former loanee Ryan Giles as in-form Middlesbrough arrive at Ewood Park on Thursday.

Giles moved to the top of the Championship assists table after creating three of Boro’s four goals in their Boxing Day win over Wigan Athletic.

He now has seven for the season operating from left wing-back for Boro, having reached double figures for assists in 2021/22, the second half of which he spent at Ewood Park.

However, it was a less than ideal time for Giles who struggled to make an impact, managing only one assist and being left out of the last four matchday squads.

Many of his appearances also saw him operate on the right-hand side of a three-man attack, but it’s as a left wing-back where he’s thrived at Boro starting 22 of their 24 Championship matches to date.

The Riverside club have enjoyed a resurgence under Michael Carrick, and the 4-1 Boxing Day win over Wigan moved them into the top half of the Championship.

Of the 22-year-old Wolves loanee, Carrick said: "We know what Gilo is capable of and we try to get him in those positions. It's important we play to our strengths.

"Gilo's game is getting forward. His delivery and left foot is top quality."

Rovers host Boro looking to react to their Boxing Day defeat at Sunderland, but have lost their last two Ewood matches 4-1. However, they are looking to do the double over Boro after a 2-1 win at the Riverside in October.

Jon Dahl Tomasson’s side will need to be aware of the threat of Akpom who is now the Championship’s leading marksman with 12, nine of which have come in his last 10 games.

Carrick has backed him to finish the season as the Championship’s top scorer, but is also looking beyond goals when it comes to the contribution of the 27-year-old.

He said: "We played some terrific football and Chuba got on the end of it. He'll get the headlines and praise for the goals but it was more the link-up play and the problems he caused them.

"I'm delighted for him. He's on a right purple patch at the minute and long may it continue."

A positive for Rovers is their recent record against Boro, unbeaten in their last seven matches.

That includes a 1-0 win at Ewood in January, as well as the October win at the Riverside.

Defeat to Preston North End in Rovers’ last home match ended a run of six successive defeats on their home patch, while they were also beaten 4-1 last week in the Carabao Cup by Nottingham Forest.

Tomasson is looking forward to the Ewood double-header in the space of three days, with Cardiff City providing the opposition for the lunchtime kick-off on New Year’s Day.

But his focus is on Middlesbrough and his side getting back to their best on home turf.

“When we went there, Middlesbrough has now improved a lot,” Tomasson explained.

“I look forward to playing a game at Ewood Park.

“We have created a fortress and we play in front of our fans in the next two games in this New Year period. I am looking forward to playing those games.

“I think we can all agree that Preston was a bad game, we are not happy with that game.

“Against Nottingham Forest, it was very normal, they played their best team and we are developing players. That was a different situation.”

The game will also be a first return for Darragh Lenihan who left Rovers in the summer after more than 250 appearances for the club.

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