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| Scott Carson celebrating teammate Johnny Russell's 88th minute equaliser |
JOHNNY RUSSELL struck in the dying minutes to rescue a point for Paul Clement’s Derby after they had trailed to Middlesbrough for more than an hour.
Spanish star striker Kike produced a stunning finish to boost Middlesbrough’s hopes of continuing their excellent start to the new Championship campaign.
Kike pounced in the 16th minute to beat Scott Carson with a stinging left foot drive on a night when Clement suffered more injury heartache.
Already robbed of the services of knee injury victims Craig Bryson and Will Hughes, he lost two more midfielders, Jeff Hendrick and Jamie Hanson, who both limped off before half time, forcing him into a reshuffle in the middle of the park.
The loss of Hendrick was a particularly severe blow as he had posed the biggest threat to Boro in the opening stages of the encounter.
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| Kike put Middlesbrough in front after 16 minutes |
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| Grant Leadbitter's first-half free-kick almost gave Boro a two-goal lead before half-time |
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| Paul Clement can breathe a sigh of relief but is still without a win as Rams' boss |
But Boro were always a threat on the counter attack and almost stretched their lead when Kike tried his luck again from a tight angle midway through the second half.
Clement had brought in Andreas Weimann at the expense of Johnny Russell to give the Rams more of a cutting edge, but the first threat came from the middle of the park as Jeff Hendrick tested out the reflexes of Dimi Konstantopoulos with a volley that was comfortably pushed away by the Boro 'keeper moving smartly to his left.
Though Derby continued to enjoy the lion's share of the possession and probed for another opening, Boro had few other moments of alarm before they broke the deadlock in the 16th minute through Kike.
Defender George Friend had a big hand in the goal, neatly chesting down Ben Gibson's pass before cutting in from the left.
His initial shot from the edge of the box broke kindly for Kike who lashed his left foot shot past Scott Carson and in at the far post.
Boro sought to capitalise on uncertainty in the home side's ranks, but Kike probably should have done better with a close range header which drifted wide of Carson's left hand post after being picked out by Stewart Downing's cross.
There was another anxious moment for Derby when referee Stephen Martin awarded the visitors a free kick which Grant Leadbitter delivered into the box and Carson was relieved to see it flash wide with stretching to get a touch.
As the first half moved into its closing stages, the Rams were given some hope that they could haul themselves back on level terms.
Once again, it was Hendrick who posed the threat as he burst into the box onto Weimann's astute pass, but a moment's hestitation allowed Gibson to recover vital ground and block his eventual attempt to get a shot on target.
As if things weren't tough enough for Derby, their problems multiplied when they lost both Jamie Hanson and Hendrick in quick succession, both midfielders being forced to limp off with injuries which forced Clement into a reshuffle.
But the first period ended on a brighter note for them when they were awarded a free kick after Tom Ince was bundled over by Leadbitter on the edge of the box.
Ince picked himself to curl the free kick round the Boro wall, but Konstantopoulos dived low to his right to pull off a fingertip save and Gibson ensured that substitute Russell didn't make an immediate impact on his introduction.
There was further encouragement for Derby at the start of the second half as they probed for an opening, but the Boro defence, excellently marshalled by the outstanding Gibson, withstood all that they could throw at them.
Furthermore, Kike underlined his considerable threat once again in a rare foray by the visitors, unleashing a dipping shot from wide on the right which Carson was relieved to see fly over the bar.
Derby kept plugging away in search of an equaliser and almost grabbed one when Chris Martin met Russell’s cross with a close range header only for Konstantopoulos to smother it on the line.
The Rams finally got their reward when substitute Russell finished from Thorne’s assist in the 88th minute to level the scores.
Derby County (4-3-3): Carson – Baird, Keogh, Shackell, Warnock – Hanson (Shotton 38 mins), Thorne, Hendrick (Russell 42 mins) – T Ince, C Martin, A Weimann (Bent 71 mins).
Middlesbrough (4-4-2): Konstantopoulos – Kalas, Ayala, Gibson, Friend – Clayton, Leadbitter, Adomah, Fabbrini (Reach 73 mins) – Downing (Forshaw 88 mins) , Kike (Stuani 76 mins).
Referee: S Martin
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