Matt Targett missed the draw at Swansea while Alex Bangura was forced off
06:00, 07 Apr 2026
Alex Bangura of Middlesbrough celebrates scoring his team's first goal with teammate Tommy Conway
Kim Hellberg is hoping Matt Targett is back for Middlesbrough’s clash with Portsmouth on Saturday, as Alex Bangura suffered his latest injury setback in the draw at Swansea City.
Bangura had an eventful 30 minutes in South Wales after being forced to make his first start since New Year’s Day. The left-back put Boro ahead in the game after just 18 minutes, firing an effort clinically into the roof of the net after a clever give-and-go with Tommy Conway.
But the Sierra Leone international’s celebrations didn’t last long. Just two minutes later he was rash in the tackle and conceded a penalty that allowed Zan Vipotnik to level the score, with Boro losing their early momentum thereafter.
And Bangura’s afternoon would then last less than 15 minutes more as he went down off the ball with some kind of muscle injury. He looked inconsolable as he left the field, this the latest of a long line of injury setbacks since joining Boro in the summer of 2023.
Asked after, Hellberg said: “It’s too early to say. Of course he is distraught. You go out after being injured, you go back and do those 25 minutes, you're looking like a Roberto Carlos left-back again and it’s tough.
“I feel very sorry for him. He’s a brilliant boy and a brilliant footballer. Hopefully it’s not that bad.”
Bangura was back in the starting line-up with Targett forced to miss out. That followed his late withdrawal in the defeat against Millwall on Good Friday. But the post-match update was better on the Newcastle United loanee.
Hellberg said after: “He missed out because of the injury he suffered in the Millwall game. Hopefully he is back for Saturday. That’s the aim.”
The Boro boss will be hoping Targett isn’t the only player returning to action when Boro host Portsmouth on Saturday. With his side short of options of late, even just some of their injured players like Hayden Hackney, Leo Castledine, Morgan Whittaker and Sammy Silvera, would be a boost for the final five games.
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