Britt Assombalonga has been singing the praises of Middlesbrough manager Jonathan Woodgate.

The Teessiders haven't enjoyed the best of starts to the Championship season after picking up just 13 points from 16 games so far, a run which has left then sitting in 22nd place in the table.

Despite now facing a potential battle to avoid relegation, the new boss seems to have made quite an impression on the squad.

Middlesbrough are without a win in their last nine fixtures, but speaking to the Northern Echo, Assombalonga was keen to emphasise that the entire squad was firmly behind the boss as they look to get their season back on track.

Speaking of Woodgate, Assombalonga said: “He’s always positive.

"The manager is always positive. If we’re bad then we’re bad, and he lets us know. But when we’ve played well, like we did (at QPR), he praises us. He tells us to keep working hard.

“He’s a great guy, a great manager, and everyone respects him. Everyone wants to work hard for him.”

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That much was evident in Middlesbrough's last fixture as the team rallied to secure a 2-2 draw against Queens Park Rangers, and Assombalonga said that the team will be determined to use this international break to get their heads straight once again.

He said: "I’m sure this two weeks will be full of hard training sessions to make sure we’re ready for after the break.

"There’ll be time off, but when we’re in, we’re in, and we’ll be working hard.”

The verdict

While it's been a shaky start to Jonathan Woodgate's reign as manager, it's reassuring to see that the Middlesbrough players are still firmly behind him.

It's a media cliche for the man in charge to  'lose the dressing room', and with results clearly not going the Teessiders' way, it was starting to look worrying for the gaffer.

However results and performances over the last couple of weeks have shown a real commitment from the Middlesbrough squad, meaning that they're clearly still fighting for the manager.

That fight will be crucial if Woodgate and his players are to take themselves out of trouble.