Middlesbrough's plans ahead of their game with Leeds United haven't been ideal, with the team's flight from Newport being cancelled, Sky Sports have revealed. 

It topped off what was a miserable evening for Tony Pulis' side, after they crashed out of the FA Cup with a disappointing 2-0 defeat to League Two side, Newport County.

The original flight they were due to board was cancelled due to an engine failure, which meant that they made the decision to travel back up to Middlesbrough by coach.

This just added to a woeful night in South Wales, as it was also revealed that their original flight was delayed by two hours, before eventually being cancelled.

They arrived back up the club's training ground at 7 am, which meant that it was likely they didn't train as planned in the morning ahead of the Leeds game.

It's going to be one of the biggest games of the season for both sides, as they look to strengthen their grip on challenging for an automatic promotion place to the Premier League.

It will be interesting to see if this latest development has affected the squad, but they can't make this an excuse, as it's crucial they get an all-important three points.

The Verdict

This is far from ideal.

Going into a potentially season-defining game, you need to have the perfect week or preparation, and Tony Pulis couldn't have asked for a worse week in the build-up to this one.

Leeds will surely take advantage of this and look to add further misery to a shocking week for Boro.