‘We’ve passed a big test here’ - Chris Wilder delivers West Brom verdict following Boro comeback

Steve Bruce’s men were on the end of a second-half come back from Boro at the Riverside
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Middlesbrough manager Chris Wilder says that West Brom ‘frustrated’ his side for large periods of Tuesday evening’s game but there was ‘only going to be one winner’ once Paddy McNair had fired home the equaliser.

Albion scored their first goal in over eight hours of football at the Riverside and looked for a good while to be heading to their first victory in six games.

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But Steve Bruce’s men wilted under the second-half pressure and were unable to muster anything of real note after McNair leveled things up.

Chris Wilder the Middlesbrough manager reacts during the Sky Bet Championship match between Middlesbrough and West Bromwich Albion at Riverside StadiumChris Wilder the Middlesbrough manager reacts during the Sky Bet Championship match between Middlesbrough and West Bromwich Albion at Riverside Stadium
Chris Wilder the Middlesbrough manager reacts during the Sky Bet Championship match between Middlesbrough and West Bromwich Albion at Riverside Stadium

Speaking to BBC Radio Tees after the contest, Wilder claims that it was a big three points for his side to pick up.

“With the quality they’ve got, West Brom were favourites to go up at the start of the season and things haven’t turned out like they hoped,” he said.

“But they’ve had a change of manager, they’ve still got good players - and we’ve passed a big test here.

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“We were getting frustrated in the first half, including me, as a few decisions didn’t go our way, but we got to half-time and calmed ourselves down.

“We started off better in the second half, hit the ball a bit longer and turned them round a bit more and then the momentum of our substitutions gave not just the team but the whole stadium a lift and, from the moment we equalised, there was only going to be one winner.”

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