Coventry City will return to the top of the Championship if they beat leaders Middlesbrough on Monday next
Brian Dick Reach Football Correspondent
10:03, 13 Feb 2026
Leo Castledine of Middlesbrough
Leo Castledine of Middlesbrough(Image: Getty Images)
Middlesbrough could be without four players for Monday night’s promotion showdown with Coventry City.
Boro boss Kim Hellberg will give Chelsea loanee Leo Castledine more time to prove himself fit for what could be a watershed fixture in both teams’ seasons.
If the Sky Blues lose they will be five points behind Boro and looking over their shoulder at the play-off pack, if they win they go back to the top of the table and reassert their status as champions-elect.
And Castledine, who has made an impressive start after a January transfer which saw him end his time with League One Huddersfield to move to Boro, will hope to be involved.
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The 20-year-old attacking midfielder has missed the last two matches and Hellberg said: “Leo is better. He's getting better. We'll see if this game comes too early or not, but soon he will be back.”
The Swede knows he will be without left back Alex Bangura and centre backs Alfie Jones and George Edmundson, while Darragh Lenihan’s long-term injury has seen him left out of the squad submitted to the EFL.
Bangura and Jones are believed to be the closest to returning. Hellberg said: “I think there are some weeks left for both.
“Maybe around the next national break - two weeks back and forth around that time. It’s hard to be precise this far out, but if you want a rough date, I’d say around the international break, maybe just before.”
Forwards David Strelec and Kaly Sene have made comebacks in recent weeks and will hope to break into an XI that was unchanged for the 2-1 win at Sheffield United last time out.
Boro go into the game on the back of six consecutive Championship wins, while the Sky Blues have won just two in eight.
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