Three things that we learnt from Crystal Palace’s victory over Middlesbrough

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Middlesbrough shouldn’t be disregarded from relegation talk

They have the best chance of surviving from the three promoted sides and have started the season well, but Boro will be battling in the bottom half of the Premier League. When discussing relegation candidates, Aitor Karanka’s men are rarely mentioned by the media. Although they have made some impressive signings this summer, there is a lot of inexperience in the Boro side and that showed on Saturday.

One of their new signings, Viktor Fischer made his first league start on Saturday and he struggled to have an impact on the game. He struggled with the physicality and didn’t look ready to start matches for Middlesbrough. Despite being at home, the Teesside club struggled to create chances and relied heavily on set pieces. They were facing a side short on confidence, but they rarely put the Palace defence under pressure. The promoted side will have to improve massively in that area of the game if they are to comfortably stay in the division. Middlesbrough supporters should be confident about their chances of avoiding relegation, but there is still plenty of work to do before they can be considered a Premier League side.