Middlesbrough will face Birmingham City and Barnsley in the coming week without Grant Leadbitter, with the club’s captain set to face a two-match suspension following his 10^th caution of the season.

The club have moved to their official website to confirm Leadbitter’s suspension, after he picked up a yellow card against Leeds United on Friday evening.

That ban will rule the midfielder out of Tuesday’s clash with Birmingham City, as well as the fixture against Barnsley, as Tony Pulis’ side continue to push on for a top-six place.

Leadbitter was taken off during the first-half of Friday’s clash, with a hamstring injury, as a hat-trick from Patrick Bamford put Boro into seventh and piled the pressure on the top-six ahead of the 11 game run-in.

Pulis’ side now enter the final 11 fixtures of the season on 55 points, sitting just two points adrift of the top-six ahead of another crucial week.

Whilst Leadbitter has been denied the chance to hurry back into action, Pulis could be boosted by the return of Fabio in the next week, with the defender set to return to first-team training at some point in the coming seven days.

The Verdict

Obviously, Leadbitter’s absence is a blow for Boro, however, the 32-year-old will miss fixtures against two of the bottom four and Pulis will be confident his side has enough to pick up results without the midfielder.

Boro’s result on Friday, which Leadbitter was key to helping them on their way to, has put Pulis’ side in a great position heading into the next week.

If the Teessiders can get six points from the next two, there is every chance they will be kicking on to secure a top-six finish.

Middlesbrough fans… Let us know your thoughts!