Middlesbrough continued their remarkable run of form as they beat promotion-chasing Preston North End by two goals to nil at Deepdale on New Year's Day. 

Goals from Rudy Gestede and an own goal from Ben Davies saw Boro run out surprise winners on the day, as they now sit 16th in the Championship.

It also means that Middlesbrough have now won four games in a row, which has seen them pull clear of the relegation zone, which will be pleasing to see for the club's supporters.

There had previously been concern over their survival chances in the second tier, as they started this year's campaign poorly in Woodgate's first season in management.

In our latest FLW Spotlight, we look into Rudy Gestede's performance against Preston in more detail, and see if he can be the man to fire Jonathan Woodgate's side up the league table.

Gestede was making just his first league start for Middlesbrough this season in their league campaign, and he certainly made a positive impact.

He scored Boro's opener on the day, which came after 40 minutes after soaking up pressure from Preston in the early stages of the contest.

Gestede certainly wasn't short of confidence when going forward either, with the 31-year-old attempting eight shots in total despite Middlesbrough being up against it for most of the game.

He won a total of 17 aerial duels as well, although the majority of those came from set pieces in which Middlesbrough were forced to defend for their lives at times during the game.

How much can you remember about Middlesbrough's 2017/18 season? 

But it's that willingness to help his side at both ends of the pitch which make him an excellent option to have in the Middlesbrough squad for Jonathan Woodgate.

That's highlighted with Gestede making five interceptions yesterday as Middlesbrough battled to keep their two goal lead during the second-half.

His passing statistics from the game also make for impressive reading, with the forward having a pass accuracy of 71% from the 14 passes he attempted in total during the game.

Gestede's performance has certainly given Woodgate a potential selection dilemma heading into the second-half of this year's league campaign, as he'll feel as though he's done enough to keep the likes of Britt Assombalonga out of the team for the foreseeable future.