Howson captains Carrick’s Boro
Middlesbrough (3-5-2): 23 Glover; 3 Van den Berg, 6 Fry, 27 Engel; 11 I Jones, 4 Barlaser, 16 Howson, 7 Hackney, 24 Bangura; 25 Crooks, 9 Latte Lath
Subs: 32 J Jones, 5 Clarke, 14 Gilbert, 19 Coburn, 28 O’Brien. 48 Kavanagh, 49 McCabe, 52 Bridge, 57 Bilongo
Clubs set for 1998 repeat
Tonight’s contest between Middlesbrough and Chelsea will be the fourth time in history that the clubs have met in this competition – with the Londoners currently having the edge with two wins to one.
And rather strangely, all four meetings have taken place with Boro as a second-tier side while the Blues were cemented in the top-flight.
The last of the previous three showdowns was the 1998 final when Chelsea, managed by the late, great Gianluca Vialli, prevailed 2-0 against Bryan Robson’s Boro with extra-time goals from Frank Sinclair and Roberto Di Matteo.
