Follow live coverage as Middlesbrough face Blackburn Rovers in the Championship today.
An increasingly competitive second tier in English football remains an intense and exciting competition, with the prize of a place in the Premier League on offer at the end of the season.
Relegation from the top flight last term means Luton, Burnley and Sheffield United are all back in the second tier this term and will be expected to push for play-off spots again at least, but so too will Norwich City, an improving Coventry and beaten play-off finalists Leeds United. At the other end of the table, Wayne Rooney is aiming to revive Plymouth’s fortunes after they narrowly avoided relegation last year, with Portsmouth and Derby the teams promoted from League One along with play-off final winners Oxford.
Follow live updates from today’s game in the live blog below.
Middlesbrough FC 0 - 1 Blackburn Rovers FC
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
21:24Goal! Middlesbrough 0, Blackburn Rovers 1. Dominic Hyam (Blackburn Rovers) right footed shot from very close range following a corner.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
21:23Corner, Blackburn Rovers. Conceded by Neto Borges.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
21:23Foul by Emmanuel Latte Lath (Middlesbrough).
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
21:22Attempt missed. Micah Hamilton (Middlesbrough) right footed shot from outside the box is close, but misses the top left corner. Assisted by Ben Doak.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
21:19Offside, Blackburn Rovers. Todd Cantwell is caught offside.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
21:17Corner, Middlesbrough. Conceded by Harry Pickering.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
21:17Offside, Blackburn Rovers. Tyrhys Dolan is caught offside.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
21:16Foul by Tommy Conway (Middlesbrough).
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
21:16Lewis Travis (Blackburn Rovers) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
21:15Substitution, Blackburn Rovers. Owen Beck replaces Ryan Hedges.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
21:12Attempt saved. Yuki Ohashi (Blackburn Rovers) header from the centre of the box is saved in the centre of the goal. Assisted by Sondre Tronstad with a cross.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
21:12Corner, Blackburn Rovers. Conceded by George Edmundson.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
21:12Foul by Daniel Barlaser (Middlesbrough).
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
21:04Corner, Middlesbrough. Conceded by Callum Brittain.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
21:04Corner, Middlesbrough. Conceded by Yuki Ohashi.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
21:02Foul by Neto Borges (Middlesbrough).
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
21:02Ben Doak (Middlesbrough) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
21:02Attempt blocked. Tyrhys Dolan (Blackburn Rovers) right footed shot from the left side of the box is blocked. Assisted by Lewis Travis.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
20:59Corner, Middlesbrough. Conceded by Danny Batth.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
20:57Attempt missed. Neto Borges (Middlesbrough) header from the centre of the box misses to the right. Assisted by Ben Doak with a cross.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
20:57Attempt blocked. Emmanuel Latte Lath (Middlesbrough) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
20:57Attempt blocked. Emmanuel Latte Lath (Middlesbrough) left footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked. Assisted by Ben Doak.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
20:55Ben Doak (Middlesbrough) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
20:52Second Half begins Middlesbrough 0, Blackburn Rovers 0.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
20:37First Half ends, Middlesbrough 0, Blackburn Rovers 0.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
20:35Offside, Middlesbrough. Daniel Barlaser is caught offside.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
20:34Offside, Blackburn Rovers. Yuki Ohashi is caught offside.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
20:34Attempt blocked. Tyrhys Dolan (Blackburn Rovers) right footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked. Assisted by Callum Brittain with a cross.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
20:33Attempt blocked. Ryan Hedges (Blackburn Rovers) right footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
20:33Attempt missed. Callum Brittain (Blackburn Rovers) left footed shot from the centre of the box misses to the right.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
20:31Fourth official has announced 6 minutes of added time.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
20:29Attempt missed. Emmanuel Latte Lath (Middlesbrough) header from the centre of the box.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
20:27Offside, Blackburn Rovers. Tyrhys Dolan is caught offside.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
20:24Attempt saved. Emmanuel Latte Lath (Middlesbrough) right footed shot from the centre of the box is saved in the bottom left corner. Assisted by Daniel Barlaser.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
20:23Jonny Howson (Middlesbrough) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
20:18Attempt saved. George Edmundson (Middlesbrough) left footed shot from outside the box is saved.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
20:13Ryan Hedges (Blackburn Rovers) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
20:10Offside, Blackburn Rovers. Ryan Hedges is caught offside.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
20:09Attempt missed. Tyrhys Dolan (Blackburn Rovers) header from very close range.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
20:10Attempt missed. Matt Clarke (Middlesbrough) header from the centre of the box is close, but misses to the right. Assisted by Daniel Barlaser with a cross following a corner.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
20:07Corner, Middlesbrough. Conceded by Harry Pickering.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
20:07Substitution, Middlesbrough. Micah Hamilton replaces Riley McGree because of an injury.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
20:07Delay over. They are ready to continue.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
20:07Delay in match because of an injury Riley McGree (Middlesbrough).
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
20:07Delay over. They are ready to continue.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
20:07Delay in match because of an injury Riley McGree (Middlesbrough).
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
20:07Delay over. They are ready to continue.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
20:07Delay in match because of an injury Yuki Ohashi (Blackburn Rovers).
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
19:59Riley McGree (Middlesbrough) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
19:59Foul by Riley McGree (Middlesbrough).
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
19:57Jonny Howson (Middlesbrough) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
19:56Offside, Blackburn Rovers. Yuki Ohashi is caught offside.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
19:53Offside, Middlesbrough. Emmanuel Latte Lath is caught offside.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
19:52Foul by Ryan Hedges (Blackburn Rovers).
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
19:52Foul by George Edmundson (Middlesbrough).
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
19:48Corner, Blackburn Rovers. Conceded by George Edmundson.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
19:48Delay over. They are ready to continue.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
19:48Delay in match because of an injury Emmanuel Latte Lath (Middlesbrough).
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
19:46First Half begins.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
19:15Lineups are announced and players are warming up.
Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers
17:45Follow live football coverage with The Independent today.
Whether it's Premier League, Champions League, a European Championship or the World Cup we will keep you up to date with everything you need to know.
We will have all the latest scores, goals and updates plus analysis and reaction throughout the game here.
