Middlesbrough FC vs Southampton FC, Championship 2025-26 PLAYOFFS
Overview
Match Preview
Middlesbrough FC vs Southampton FC — Championship at Riverside Stadium.
- Middlesbrough FC 46 games · 80 pts (2026/27)
- Southampton FC 46 games · 80 pts (2026/27)
Standings
| # | Team | P | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Coventry City FC | 46 | 95 |
| 2 | Ipswich Town FC | 46 | 84 |
| 3 | Millwall FC | 46 | 83 |
| 4 | Southampton FC | 46 | 80 |
| 5 | Middlesbrough FC | 46 | 80 |
| 6 | Hull City AFC | 46 | 73 |
| 7 | Wrexham AFC | 46 | 71 |
| 8 | Derby County FC | 46 | 69 |
| 9 | Norwich City FC | 46 | 65 |
| 10 | Birmingham City FC | 46 | 64 |
| 11 | Swansea City AFC | 46 | 64 |
| 12 | Bristol City FC | 46 | 62 |
| 13 | Sheffield United FC | 46 | 60 |
| 14 | Preston North End FC | 46 | 60 |
| 15 | Queens Park Rangers FC | 46 | 58 |
| 16 | Watford FC | 46 | 57 |
| 17 | Stoke City FC | 46 | 55 |
| 18 | Portsmouth FC | 46 | 55 |
| 19 | Charlton Athletic FC | 46 | 53 |
| 20 | Blackburn Rovers FC | 46 | 52 |
| 21 | West Bromwich Albion FC | 46 | 51 |
| 22 | Oxford United FC | 46 | 47 |
| 23 | Leicester City FC | 46 | 46 |
| 24 | Sheffield Wednesday FC | 46 | 0 |
Head-to-Head
Recent Form
| Date | Opponent | H/A | Score | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 09 May | Southampton FC | H | 0–0 | D |
| 02 May | Wrexham AFC | A | 2–2 | D |
| 25 Apr | Watford FC | H | 5–1 | W |
| 22 Apr | Sheffield Wednesday FC | H | 1–0 | W |
| 19 Apr | Ipswich Town FC | A | 2–2 | D |
| 11 Apr | Portsmouth FC | H | 0–1 | L |
| Date | Opponent | H/A | Score | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 09 May | Middlesbrough FC | A | 0–0 | D |
| 02 May | Preston North End FC | A | 3–1 | W |
| 28 Apr | Ipswich Town FC | H | 2–2 | D |
| 25 Apr | Manchester City FC | A | 1–2 | L |
| 21 Apr | Bristol City FC | H | 2–2 | D |
| 18 Apr | Swansea City AFC | A | 2–1 | W |
Season Stats
| Middlesbrough FC | Southampton FC | |
|---|---|---|
| #5 | Position | #4 |
| 80 | Points | 80 |
| 46 | Played | 46 |
| 22 / 14 / 10 | W / D / L | 22 / 14 / 10 |
| 72 | Scored | 82 |
| 47 | Conceded | 56 |
| +25 | GD | +26 |
| 1.74 | PPG | 1.74 |
| 48% | Win % | 48% |
Key Stats
67%
Both Teams to Score
H2H (6 games)
H2H (6 games)
50%
Over 2.5 Goals
H2H history
H2H history
Middlesbrough FC are 5th (80 pts). Southampton FC are 4th (80 pts).
Events
Match Events
- 0' Welcome to Riverside Stadium that hosts another battle between Middlesbrough FC and Southampton FC.
- 5' Spectators do not have much to choose from both teams. The sides had several scoring chances but they still need a bit more than just a sight of a goal.
- 10' Spectators are craving for more action. Both teams play very cautiously. They need to put some more energy.
- 15' Southampton FC looks like a favorite considering 1 games won in last 4 matches with its main striker Ross Stewart scoring 1 goals.
- 20' Not even hints on scoring a goal over the last 20 minutes.
- 25' Middlesbrough FC is defending very well tonight not leaving a chance for their rivals to get through for a goal.
- 30' It’s high time Kim Hellberg made some changes to put the his team’s game back to action.
- 35' While there is no rush on the pitch, let’s have a look at some stats. Morgan Whittaker made 385 appearances and scored 44 goals. He is very likely to score a goal today.
- 40' It looks surprising Southampton FC does not make any changes. Solomon Brynn has some obvious troubles when approaching to the goal.
- 45' We miss some good tackles and strikes. Is there anyone on the field to put the game back to action?
- 50' The referee is likely to let players tackle, as he already missed some meaty challenges during opening seconds. He is still to establish what should not be done by the players and what is acceptable on the pitch. It’s going to be a tough game for Callum Brittain suffering a number of foals already.
- 55' A meaty challenge results in booking for Cyle Larin on 55.
- 59' A meaty challenge results in booking for Flynn Downes on 59.
- 64' While players are taking a pause, let’s have a look at their stats. The teams met 4 times this season with Southampton FC winning 25% of all matches.
- 69' Although teams showed high tempo form the start, they seem to slow down a bit. Both sides really need to catch a fire. Otherwise, we have another goalless match.
- 74' Southampton FC is showing some good football. However, Southampton FC are ready to play back every minute. It might result in some problems for the home side. The game will hardly remain goalless.
- 79' Southampton FC seems to be on a short break. The game is mainly concentrated in the center. It’s high time they got back to action. Otherwise, it looks like a goalless game.
- 84' Matt Targett needs to be pretty careful with his discipline considering 0 Yellow cards this season.
- 89' Southampton FC started playing very sharply right from the kick off. However, it slowed down the tempo rapidly by 89.
- The final whistle. It looks like we are having a draw.
Lineups
Middlesbrough FC Lineups
Starting XI
- 2
- 3
- 6
- 12
- 8
- 13
- 11
- 31
- 18
- 29
- 9
Bench
- 16
- 27
- 22
- 45
- 14
- 32
- 23
- 44
Coach
Kim Hellberg
Southampton FC Lineups
Starting XI
- 4
- 15
- 14
- 3
- 9
- 41
- 6
- 10
- 18
- 20
- 13
Bench
- 25
- 11
- 19
- 34
- 27
- 23
- 17
- 24
- 48
Coach
Tonda Eckert
H2H
H2H Top Scorers
| Player | Goals |
|---|---|
| Riley McGree | 2 |
| Adam Armstrong | 2 |
| Jonny Howson | 1 |
| Emmanuel Latte Lath | 1 |
| Ross Stewart | 1 |
| Shea Charles | 1 |
Head to Head
Middlesbrough FC Form
Southampton FC Form
Predictions
Prediction accuracy
1 / 3
1.55
Middlesbrough FC xG
Expected Goals
Dixon-Coles · Bivariate Poisson · Neg. Binomial · Elo
1.08
Southampton FC xG
I would bet for:
Markets are evenly balanced — no clear value pick.
Match Result
✗ WrongActual: Draw
Both Teams to Score
✗ Wrong
Avg goals/match: 2.63
Actual: No — clean sheet
Over / Under Goals
✓ O/U 2.5| Line | Over | Under | |
|---|---|---|---|
| ± 0.5 | 91% |
|
9% |
| ± 1.5 | 74% |
|
26% |
| ± 2.5 | 48% |
|
52% |
| ± 3.5 | 27% |
|
73% |
| ± 4.5 | 13% |
|
87% |
Double Chance
Middlesbrough FC or Draw
74%
Draw or Southampton FC
53%
Middlesbrough FC or Southampton FC
73%
Half-Time Result
Correct Score
✓ In top 12
1 – 1
13%
1 – 0
10.2%
0 – 0
Actual
2 – 1
9%
2 – 0
8.4%
0 – 1
6.8%
1 – 2
6.3%
2 – 2
4.9%
3 – 1
4.7%
3 – 0
4.3%
0 – 2
4.1%
3 – 2
2.6%
Asian Handicap — Middlesbrough FC
| Handicap | Middlesbrough FC covers | Push | Southampton FC covers |
|---|---|---|---|
| -2.5 | 10% | — | 90% |
| -2 | 10% | 14% | 76% |
| -1.5 | 24% | — | 76% |
| -1 | 24% | 22% | 54% |
| -0.5 | 46% | — | 54% |
| +0.5 | 75% | — | 25% |
| +1 | 75% | 15% | 10% |
| +1.5 | 90% | — | 10% |
| +2 | 90% | 7% | 3% |
| +2.5 | 97% | — | 3% |
Clean Sheet
Middlesbrough FC keeps clean sheet
34%
✗
Southampton FC keeps clean sheet
22%
✗
Predictions are statistical estimates based on season form, H2H history, and a Poisson model. Not financial advice.