Swansea City will be hoping to resume their season strongly this weekend, as Steve Cooper's side prepare to take on struggling Middlesbrough at the Riverside.

A top-six finish will be on the Swans' sights heading into the final nine games of the season, after what has been a positive first season in charge for Cooper thus far.

The Swans currently sit 11th in the Championship table and only three points off the play-offs, with vital fixtures against Bristol City, Millwall and Nottingham Forest still to come.

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This weekend, though, it's a trip to the North East to face a Middlesbrough side sitting only two points clear of the relegation zone, and desperate to pick up points under Jonathan Woodgate.

Swansea have won only five games on the road this season, but it will be interesting to see if their away form starts to pick up in front of an empty Riverside Stadium this weekend.

Here, we take a look at the XI that we expect Cooper to field against Boro on Saturday afternoon...

The defence should look fairly similar to the one that played before the EFL was brought to a halt, with Freddie Woodman starting in goal, Joe Rodon and Ben Cabango playing in central defence, and Jake Bidwell starting at left-back.

After being rested against West Brom last time out, though, Connor Roberts should come back into the team after being dropped for Kyle Naughton.

Moving into midfield, there shouldn't be too many changes, if any, with Matt Grimes and Jay Fulton set to sit deep in midfield, allowing Conor Gallagher to sit in an advanced role.

Gallagher has chipped in with five assists since arriving from Chelsea on loan in January, and he will be keen to continue producing assists once the campaign resumes.

Andre Ayew has 14 goals to his name this term, and the wide-man will be keen to add to his tally for the season as soon as possible, starting with this weekend.

Aldo Kalulu should start on the other flank, and up top, there should be only one choice. After recently extending his loan spell from Liverpool, Rhian Brewster should start up top and lead the line on his own.