Luton Town visit is crucial for Michael Carrick's Middlesbrough for two reasons

A MIDDLESBROUGH win at home to Luton Town today would be crucial for two reasons.

Firstly, it would be only the second time this season Michael Carrick's side had managed to string together successive victories.

And secondly, it would be a much-needed instant response to last weekend's heavy home defeat to Coventry City and would set about easing Riverside doubts.

Boro have only won three of their seven Riverside games so far this season, picking up just 11 points out of a possible 21, the 17th worst home record in the division.

That is clearly something that needs addressing if Carrick's side are to first force their way into the top six - and then stay there.

Not that Carrick thinks Boro are doing anything particularly wrong on home turf.

“There is always a reason, but I think, for me, performances have largely been pretty good," said the head coach.

"It’s something we want to improve on, without doubt. We want more points from our home games and we've got to get back to doing that. The way games have gone, I think largely we’ve been the better team in most games at home. We’ve been good most of the time.

"Early on, we maybe didn’t score enough goals and take our chances. But I think the boys have shown that they’ve got a good feeling and their confidence back for that.

"Whether it happens this weekend or not, I think you can see the way the boys are playing, there is a dangerous feel to us and we feel we can score goals. That’s great to have, and doing it the way we have over the last couple of weeks will give the lads a lot of confidence."

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With confidence will hopefully come consistency, for Boro are now in need of successive triumphs if they're to set about making their presence felt at the top of the division.

"Consistency is always something you strive for because a level of results is what will carry you through a season," said Carrick.

"For sure, results-wise, we haven’t been consistent enough. I think performance-wise, we’ve been very good for the most part. That’s always the challenge - getting results more often. We’ve always got to look at what’s next and Saturday is another big one for us."

Today's visitors Luton are down in 19th, one of six sides on 15 points in a congested section of the table. But Carrick warned Boro to ignore the standings ahead of last week's visit of Coventry, and was eager to repeat himself.

“Luton are a really good team and have a lot of threats," he said.

"They were competing fantastically well in the Premier League only a few months ago with a very similar team playing a very similar way. We’ve got to respect that a lot.

"We know the type of game it will be, the threats they will pose in certain areas and we’re fully aware of the test that’s coming for us."

Something else Carrick is happy to repeat is the fact he's remains uninterested in the Championship standings at this stage.

He said: “I’m pleased with how we’re playing at this stage. In terms of where we are in the table, it’s about points and collecting points to give ourselves a chance. I’m not judging anything on this week in terms of what it’s going to look like overall.

"That kind of thing won’t get you anywhere and is just a waste of energy at this stage. You’ve got to just be consistent and put a level of performance in over a period of time.

"We are trying to do things in a certain way that we want to work for us, and that’s the important part. We’re not talking about the table at all, and I’ve not heard the players talking about it.

"It goes without saying, if you’re winning games and scoring goals, it gives you a good feeling. But we don’t make a big deal about it. "It doesn’t affect what we talk about or how we approach the next game. We’ve got to perform every game and if you get caught up emotionally in the rollercoaster every week it will sap your energy.

"We’ve got many months ahead to have to perform and win games. I’m not saying supporters can’t go through the emotions. That’s part of the passion and energy that makes their support of the club and is why the game is the game. They should enjoy the wins and then you’ve got to move on from the losses."