Kim Hellberg admitted even he was left speechless by the quality of his Middlesbrough side’s first-half display in their 3-1 Championship victory over QPR.
Hellberg maintained his 100 per cent record as Boro head coach as his side won for the fourth game in a row under his control.
David Strelec and Morgan Whittaker scored before the break, with Tommy Conway adding a third goal from the penalty spot in the second half, with Hellberg having been hugely impressed by his side’s first-half showing in particular.
He said: “Sometimes, I just looked at the players in the first half and thought, ‘Wow, there is so much quality there’.
There were so many situations where we showed so much quality.
“I think we had 76 per cent of the ball and it felt like such a quick game where we had so much control of it.
“We were very good in transition and the reaction was very good when we lost the ball.”
Hellberg replaced Rob Edwards – with Boro sitting third in the table – and they have now climbed into second, seven points clear of third-placed Preston.
Hellberg said: “It is mainly because of having a lot of good players, who have been terrific.
“You have seen the quality they have and they deserve so much credit for getting a new coach in the middle of the season and dealing with it so well.
“You are always going to want to change some things, so for them to adapt and so quickly understand is unbelievable.
“I have a very good group of players and I can also see that so many of them have been taking their chances, that then pushes the group forward.
“It is not an easy job for a player to start the season, then have to switch when it is going well.
“The challenge for me was to use those things that were good, then try to get what I want into the team. Credit to the players for the way they have adapted.”
QPR were unable to live with their opponents for the opening hour or so and while Nicolas Madsen pulled a goal back through a second-half penalty, Julien Stephan felt Middlesbrough were the best side he had encountered since entering the Championship.
The QPR boss said: “I think we faced the best team we have played since the start of the season.
“In the first hour, they played very well collectively and technically. Physically, they were very strong, they won their duels.
“They were better than us and we lost because we played against a team stronger than us.
“It’s very simply and easy to explain the result. We had a good reaction in the last 20 or 25 minutes, but I think the result is logical.
“We showed some character to react and after we scored the first goal, we had opportunities to create danger and score a second one.
“If that had happened, I would have liked to have seen the end of the game if it was 3-2 for the last 10 minutes.
“But, to be honest, they were stronger than us and we just have to accept the situation and see what will happen when we play against Middlesbrough again at home in March.
“Let’s see what improvements we are able to do in order to compete against them in March.”
