On the back of five matches without success in all competitions, a trip to leaders Leicester City had the potential to be the worst possible fixture for Middlesbrough last weekend.
Instead, Michael Carrick’s side produced one of their best league performances of the season to run out 2-1 victors at the King Power Stadium.
The success represented a first triumph in five weeks, and has proven enough to keep Boro interested in the playoff picture given that they possess a game in hand.
However, the deficit to sixth place remains at 10 points, highlighting that the North East outfit must find some consistency to become a factor at the business end of the season.
Boro’s home form has generally been poor as they have won just six of their 16 second-tier matches at the Riverside Stadium in 2023-24, scoring just 17 goals.
Plymouth, meanwhile, started February by recording a second successive victory in the Championship, seemingly ensuring that a relegation battle was beyond them.
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Ian Foster’s side have since gone four matches without a win, collecting just one point, to now only sit five points above 22nd-placed Queens Park Rangers.
In their defence, Plymouth have faced a run of Sunderland, Coventry City, Leeds United and West Bromwich Albion, yet Foster would not have expected to lose 3-0 at home to the latter in midweek.
Despite beating Swansea City on their travels on February 3, the Pilgrims remain with the second-worst away record in the division, accumulating just nine points from 16 games.
