1. 71Daily Mail, Wednesday, August 19, 2015
Sky Bet Championship
1MK DONS
BOLTON 0
1DERBY COUNTY
MIDDLESBROUGH 1
by
JANINE SELF
Powell grabs
quick winner
Searssetsup
Ipswichwin
afternewdeal
Freddie Sears celebrated his new
contract by scoring a well-worked
goal to set up a 2-0 win over
Burnley and send Ipswich to the
top of the Championship.
The former West Ham striker
signed a four-year deal before
kick-off and in the 66th minute
was superbly set up by 17-year-old
Ainsley Maitland-Niles and Brett
Pitman to fire across Tom Heaton
into the far corner.
Bournemouth manager Eddie
Howe was in the crowd and will
have been worried to see Cherries
winger Ryan Fraser, on loan at
Ipswich as part of the deal for
Tyrone Mings, limp off 28 minutes
into the game to be replaced by
David McGoldrick.
It was a forced substitution but
paid off when McGoldrick, whose
last two seasons have been
plagued by injury, extended the
lead in the 70th minute with a
close-range header.
Huddersfield boss Chris Powell
gave goalkeeper Joe Murphy his
second successive start last night
in place of Alex Smithies, who
looks set to join QPR for £2million.
But the 33-year-old Irishman was
beaten after only 17 seconds in a
1-1 draw with Brighton when Sam
Baldock set up Beram Kayal to
score.
Huddersfield were level nine
minutes into the second half when
Jacob Butterfield scored with a
left-foot shot high into the net
after a corner.
ROTHERHAM battled to pick up
their first point this season with a
0-0 home draw with Preston.
Daniel Powell came off the
bench to ensure MK Dons manager
Karl Robinson got the better of his
close friend Neil Lennon and sent
Bolton home with nothing.
Powell had only been on the pitch
five minutes when he latched on to
a Samir Carruthers through ball
that Lawrie Wilson failed to cut
out. Taking one touch to control,
the winger neatly curled the ball
past Ben Amos into the far corner.
Robinson and Lennon completed
their coaching badges together but
this was the first time they had
stood in opposing dugouts. Indeed,
it was the first time these clubs
have ever met in any competition.
The outcome was harsh on Bol-
ton, who enjoyed the better of the
game but could not take advantage
of their many corners and chances.
Prince Desir-Gouano was guilty
of sending a free header wide from
one such set-piece opportunity in
the first half.
Luckily, they were also capable of
carving out chances by other
means, the best falling to the excit-
ing 20-year-old Zach Clough.
Collecting the ball wide on the
right, he weaved past five Dons
defenders before Darren Potter slid
in to save the day as the youngster
prepared to shoot.
Clough forced David Martin into
an excellent fingertip save on to
the crossbar when he met Gary
Madine’s knockdown with a sharp
shot. Madine could have given Bol-
ton a deserved lead early in the sec-
ond half after deftly controlling a
long ball but Antony Kay deflected
his shot wide. Powell’s strike on the
hour mark made them pay.
I
F this is how Kike reacts to
speculation about incoming
strikers, Middlesbrough need
to keep the transfer chat going
all season.
The Spaniard’s third goal in two games
was a scrappy rebound. Poetry in motion?
Hardly, but Kike won’t care.
Defender George Friend was allowed to
gallop down the left, cut in and shoot into
a crowd of legs. The ball squirted into the
danger zone and Kike was off on a victory
sprint to the dug-out.
David Nugent has arrived at Middles-
brough and is loitering with intent on the
bench while a move for Michail Antonio of
Nottingham Forest looks likely before the
window shuts.
In the meantime, Kike is the sitting
candidate and adding to his tally will not
have harmed his cause, although he might
look back with regret at a free header
which bounced wide a few minutes later.
The miss did indeed turn out to be costly
as Derby subtitute Johnny Russell latched
on to a long ball and swept in an equaliser
with minutes remaining.
Such is the cosmopolitan nature of the
Championship there was also a Bernabeu
connection at the iPro Stadium last night.
Paul Clement and Aitor Karanka were
both first-team coaches at Real Madrid,
under Carlo Ancelotti and his predecessor
Jose Mourinho respectively.
Surprisingly, their paths did not cross in
Spain but both find themselves managing
high expectations while proving that good
No 2s can be successful in the top job too.
As the Championship’s two biggest spend-
ers this summer, punters and pundits alike
have wagered cash and reputations both will
be promotion-bound next May, which added
an edge to this early-season encounter.
Derby winger Tom Ince is carrying a
£4.75million price tag round his neck but
continues to be infuriatingly inconsistent.
He provided further evidence of that in
two key moments, both free kicks.
First he wafted one straight over every-
one’s heads, much to the cruel delight of
Middlesbrough’s fans. Then, after Kike’s
opener, he struck the ball beautifully only
to be denied an equaliser by goalkeeper
Dimi Konstantopoulos.
By that stage Derby had lost two players
through injury — Jamie Hanson and Jeff
Hendrick — and found themselves pushed
further and further on the back foot.
But they rallied late on, Chris Martin
forcing a fine save from Konstantopoulos
before Russell rammed home in the 88th
minute to grab Clement’s side a point.
HanleysparesRaya’sblushes
1BLACKBURN
CARDIFF 1
JOE BERNSTEIN
KIKEKICKSONSpaniard strikes again but Derby grab point
@janineself
Poacher: Middlesbrough striker Kike scores with his first shot of the game at the iPro Stadium bpi
CAPTAIN Grant Hanley scored
late to save a point for Blackburn
on a night the club paid tribute
to former owner Jack Walker.
The Scotland international’s
close-range finish on 88
minutes gave Rovers a share of
the points on a difficult evening
which saw their problems
surface early on.
Rovers fans had led an
emotional minute’s applause
before kick-off for Walker, who
led the club to the Premier
League title in 1995 and died 15
years ago this week.
But within five minutes their
side fell behind when 19-year-
old keeper David Raya botched
a clearance and Cardiff’s Joe
Mason reacted quickest to a
pass by Lee Peltier to put the
visitors ahead.
It was a far cry from the days of
‘Uncle’ Jack who helped Rovers
become the only team outside
the Big Four of Manchester
United, Arsenal, Chelsea and
Manchester City since 1992 to be
crowned top-flight champions.
Present Blackburn boss Gary
Bowyer is working under a
transfer embargo, hasn’t seen
his team win a game this season
and was missing Jordan Rhodes
with the £14million Middlesbrough
target suffering an ankle injury
at Huddersfield last weekend.
Nonetheless Blackburn had
chances to level. French striker
Fode Koita had a goal ruled out
for offside before half-time
while Hope Akpan had another
header cleared off the line.
Shane Duffy slashed wide of the
target from eight yards, Nathan
Delfouneso hit the crossbar and
Hanley managed to miss from
four yards.
But Blackburn’s endeavours
were finally rewarded two
minutes from time when Hanley
steered home Craig Conway’s
cross from close range.
FORESTFEARLOSINGTHEIRSTARSRecent weeks have seen Jose Mour-
inho, Mauricio Pochettino and Rob-
erto Martinez all vent their feelings at
the transfer window not ending until
September. Surely it can’t be long
before Forest manager Dougie Freed-
man adds his name to that list.
Forest were bright against Charlton
last night, full of intent and offering
hope that they will have a more pro-
ductive season than last. The prob-
lem, though, was that their captain
Henri Lansbury remains a target for
Burnley and star winger Michail Anto-
nio was conspicuous by his absence.
For a club operating under a transfer
embargo, that is quite a worry.
West Brom, Derby and Middles-
brough are all interested in landing
Antonio, who has been at the City
Ground little over a year but has
already scored 18 goals for the club.
His absence from the 18-man squad
was noticeable, the murmurs by sup-
porters in Forest’s Main Stand unmis-
takable. Antonio cost Forest £1.5mil-
lion from Sheffield Wednesday and
they are expected to be dealing with
bids three times that size before the
window closes.
Forest did not offer any reason why
the 25-year-old wasn’t involved but it
is conjecture they could do without.
The transfer embargo means Freed-
man cannot spend money on any new
players or offer potential newcomers
more than £10,000 a week.
That is why it is so crucial they keep
both Lansbury and Antonio — until
January at least. The former was
brilliant last night, making the hosts
tick against an intriguing Charlton
outfit. He buzzed about in midfield,
watching Dexter Blackstock twice
nod presentable opportunities wide
and Jamie Ward sting the palms of
Nick Pope.
Forest were the better side for large
spells, but the Addicks’ boss Guy
Luzon will feel Simon Makienok
should have scored twice — both
times directing headers over the bar
after wicked deliveries from the left,
the second of which was courtesy of
Tottenham loanee Cristian Ceballos.
Later Makienok forced Forest keeper
Dorus de Vries into a stunning one-
handed stop down to his right.
Charlton rather sauntered to safety
under Luzon last season but as is the
norm with owner Roland Duchatelet,
they have signed a number of a Conti-
nental players and they are likely to
strengthen further.
At Forest though, all eyes are on
possible outgoings, particularly as the
impressive Lansbury kept driving his
side all night. But even he could not
forge a goal to break the deadlock as
Forest had to settle for a point.
By JACK GAUGHAN
Quality: Forest’s Lansbury ADAM SHERGOLD
0NOTT’M FOREST
CHARLTON 0
By SHANE McGARVEY