Middlesbrough vs Norwich: Hellberg Prepares for Riverside Roar
Kim Hellberg is counting down the hours to Saturday afternoon. After a gruelling run of five away trips in six games, the Middlesbrough head coach is desperate to feel the Riverside roar again – and he wants Norwich to walk into a wall of noise.
Boro’s Carabao Cup exit at Crystal Palace on Tuesday capped a draining spell on the road, their third game in a week. Tired legs, long journeys, narrow margins. Now comes a different kind of test: a Norwich side who have steadied themselves after a shaky start and are beginning to collect wins.
Hellberg hasn’t forgotten what this fixture can become on Teesside.
He goes back to last season, to that wild finale when Hayden Hackney’s late strike sent Boro joint top of the Championship and the Riverside into chaos.
“I remember that game last season, it was a brilliant atmosphere and I remember the last five minutes were absolutely crazy,” he told BBC Radio Tees. “Norwich are a very good side… It will be a very tough game but the atmosphere in all our home games has been very good.”
That bond between team and crowd has hardened over the last year. The Swede talks about a club that has come through the fire together and emerged sharper.
“After everything that happened last season, everyone has got stronger together. Everyone has raised their level – players, supporters, coaches – everyone together to go to a higher level,” he said. “I think the atmosphere has been very good in every game we have played and I am looking forward to being back against a very good side.
“We need the supporters being on our side and doing everything they can to help get us over the line against a very good opposition.”
Norwich arrive with a clear identity under Philippe Clement, and Hellberg’s respect for the Belgian is obvious. He sees a coach who not only halted a slide but rebuilt a side under pressure.
“Philippe Clement has done a brilliant job, he's a very good coach, builds a strong and well-coached team,” Hellberg said. “He turned the season around for Norwich last year - they were in danger when he arrived and have built through that. He's a top coach and will give us a lot of different and difficult challenges.”
“I think it is going to be a very good football game, two good teams against each other, brilliant kick-off time on a Saturday and we are looking forward to it.”
If Boro need a cutting edge to match that occasion, they have quickly found one in Will Lankshear. The 21-year-old missed out on the Championship Player of the Month award on Friday, but seven goals in eight games since his summer move from Tottenham tell their own story.
Hellberg is not just pleased with the numbers. He is delighted with the example.
“I think he has done brilliantly, he's a good boy and has come into the team perfectly,” he said. “He works very hard on and off the pitch and that's the culture we are trying to create here.”
That culture, he insists, runs through the whole dressing room.
“I have seen a massive difference in the group, how they have progressed from the first day here to how we have gone forward and take care of each other in a very good way.
“I have so many good players here who compete in a brilliant way to try and help Middlesbrough win games and Will is one of them and it helps when you score a lot of goals.”
A resurgent Norwich, a Boro side straining to turn effort into momentum, and a Riverside ready to erupt again. For Hellberg, Saturday is not just a homecoming. It is a chance to see how far this stronger, tighter Middlesbrough can push themselves when the stands are at full volume.
