Middlesbrough manager Jonathan Woodgate has suggested that he felt he needed to give Dejan Stojanovic a chance to impress from the start in place of Aynsley Pears, following Boro’s 1-0 win at Chartlon Athletic.

Woodgate’s side travelled to Charlton under pressure to pick up a much-needed three points to lift themselves out of the relegation zone, and the Middlesbrough manager made decision to bring Stojanovic into the side from the start for the first time since his January move from St Gallen.

That meant that Pears’ run of 19 successive starts came to end at the Valley, and it came after the keeper had arguably been at fault for Nottingham Forest’s late equaliser in their previous game – and Stojanovic managed to record a clean sheet, as Boro picked up a potentially vital three points against Charlton.

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Speaking to Teesside Live following their win at Charlton, Woodgate suggested that he thought that Stojanovic had earnt the chance to come into the starting line-up, following his performances in training and for the club’s under23s, but he also insisted that Pears handled being dropped from the side in the right way.

“I think Aynsley has done unbelievably well but I just thought with 10 games to go Dejan has played a lot of competitive games and has done a lot better in training recently.

“He’s played a lot of under-23s games so I thought he deserved a chance. From where Aynsley has come from last year playing in non-league for Gateshead, he’s done absolutely unbelievable. His attitude again today in the warm-up, before the game, when I told him was magnificent. He’s a mature kid for a 21-year-old."

The verdict

It was a very bold call from Woodgate to make a change in goal ahead of such a vital game for his side against their relegation rivals, and it was a decision that could potentially have backfired and led to a lot of criticism, had Boro not managed to get the right result from the match.

However, Stojanovic managed to deliver an encouraging performance on his first league start for the club, and Middlesbrough were able to end their ten-match winless run and pull themselves out of the bottom three, so Woodgate’s call was vindicated.

You feel for Pears, though, somewhat given the keeper has delivered some excellent performances since he came into the side, and he has been one of Middlesbrough’s better performances throughout their difficult run of form, although he did make a mistake against Forest that cost them the win.

Stojanovic has probably done enough to keep his place in the side for the next few matches now, and having two keepers able to come into the side and perform well is not a bad thing for Boro, as they look to build on their vital win at Charlton and edge towards safety.