IT MAY be recalled, albeit with some difficulty, that the week before Middlesbrough shared, with Chesterfield, one of the most dramatic and suspenseful semi-finals in FA Cup history, they drew 1-1 with Leicester City in a forgettable League Cup final.
The destination of this season's League bauble will be settled at Hillsborough tonight (Sky Sport 1, 7.30), by penalties if necessary after extra-time. The spectacle can hardly fail to be an improvement on a Wembley affair notable only for the gaiety and good humour of the crowd and the Leicester manager's now-familiar impression of Leonard Bernstein conducting the New York Philharmonic.
Emile Heskey's goal, forced over the line with two minutes of extra time remaining, kept alive Martin O'Neill's chances of finishing a successful season at Filbert Street with some tangible reward. It also condemned Middlesbrough to the first of two cup replays in the midst of their fixture-laden fight to stay in the Premiership.
Bryan Robson will bring his team back to Hillsborough on Tuesday hoping to reach Wembley a second time by beating Chesterfield, but still fearful of relegation, a fear which will have increased if Middlesbrough do not beat Sunderland at the Riverside Stadium this weekend.
"Tomorrow's is a big game for us, of course, because it is a cup final" said Juninho yesterday, "but the most important thing is staying in the Premiership."
Juninho, along with Fabrizio Ravanelli, is crucial both to Middlesbrough's success and their survival. Leicester's chances tonight, like those of Chesterfield's next week, depend largely on how well the Brazilian is contained.
Pontus Kaamark, O'Neill's Swedish jailor, had rather more success shackling Juninho than did Chesterfield's Mark Jules seven days later. Yet Juninho eventually shook off his marker to help set up the goal for Ravanelli. which, until Heskey's equaliser, promised to bring Teesside its first major trophy.
Last Sunday, paradoxically, Juninho, consistently found in space by Ravanelli's crossfield passes, eventually destroyed Chesterfield in midfield, but still could not put the match beyond the second division side's reach. Yet should the pair take a similar grip this evening, Leicester will do well even to force another extra half hour.
Disciplined and well-organised though Leicester were at Wembley, they will hope to achieve more in attack tonight. "We were very nervous to start with," O'Neill admitted yesterday. "I hope we have a sharper cutting edge to our game this time."
Leicester should have no fitness problems for the replay. Robson hopes to have Mark Schwarzer, who was cup-tied and injured on Sunday, in goal along with Nigel Pearson, who missed the Chesterfield game with a calf injury. Neil Cox is due back from suspension, which will probably mean Curtis Fleming reverting to left-back.
