Kim Hellberg’s perfect start to life as Middlesbrough head coach continued as his high-flying side earned a 3-1 Championship victory over QPR at the Riverside.
Hellberg has now won his first four matches since replacing Rob Edwards on Teesside, following in the footsteps of Bryan Robson to become only the second Boro boss to achieve the feat.
His side’s latest success was thoroughly deserved and came courtesy of first-half goals from David Strelec and Morgan Whittaker and a second-half penalty from Tommy Conway.
Nicolas Madsen also scored from the spot as he pulled a goal back for QPR, but Julien Stephan’s side were well beaten as they suffered only a second defeat in their last six games.
Middlesbrough thought they should have been awarded a penalty in the opening two minutes, but QPR defender Amadou Mbengue just got a touch on the ball as he sent Conway sprawling after the Scotland striker had broken clear and nudged the ball past goalkeeper Paul Nardi.
Mbengue was involved again shortly after, sticking out a leg to deflect Conway’s curled strike just wide of the post, but Boro’s first-half dominance was rewarded when they opened the scoring on the half-hour mark.
Hayden Hackney’s driving run and defence-splitting pass released Strelec between QPR’s two centre-halves and the Slovakia international slotted a slick low finish past Nardi.
Strelec made it two goals in his last three games after also scoring at Hull, but the striker’s good run is nothing compared to that of Whittaker.
The winger scored for the fifth game in a row at Charlton on Tuesday night and made it six in six when he doubled Boro’s lead just six minutes after Strelec’s opener.
Sol Brynn’s quick thinking set him up, with the goalkeeper arrowing a long pass out to the left-hand side.
Whittaker, brimming with confidence at the moment, stepped inside Rhys Norrington-Davies and curled the ball into the bottom corner.
The visitors failed to threaten at all before the break and their afternoon became even more difficult when they conceded a third goal just five minutes into the second half.
Koki Saito brought down Callum Brittain as he stepped across the Middlesbrough full-back on the edge of the area, and Conway converted from the spot to claim his first goal since late August.
Brynn saved from Richard Kone as QPR finally stirred and the visitors pulled a goal back through a penalty of their own with 20 minutes remaining.
Brittain fouled Paul Smyth as the QPR winger broke into the left-hand side of the 18-yard box and Madsen successfully beat Brynn from the spot.
