'The game was lost in our dressing room' - Chris Wilder on Middlesbrough's defeat to Preston North End

Middlesbrough manager Chris Wilder felt the game was lost inside his side's dressing room following Preston North End's 2-1 win at the Riverside.
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Boro went 1-0 up in the first half, Paddy McNair's header clipping the crossbar on the way in from a corner.

The home side did have the better of it for most of the game, Daniel Iversen was a star turn in goal preventing Middlesbrough from extending their lead.

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North End managed to get themselves back in it through a brilliant Ched Evans header from a corner of their own before Emil Riis punced on a mistake at the back to make it two.

Chris Wilder at the Riverside during his side's 2-1 loss to PNE.Chris Wilder at the Riverside during his side's 2-1 loss to PNE.
Chris Wilder at the Riverside during his side's 2-1 loss to PNE.

Wilder said: "I believed before the game that the result would be decided in our dressing room, I wasn't being arrogant, I was confident in terms of our preparation and what we'd seen off the back of the weekend.

"We would have to play well, in order to win any game of football.

"I thought they were the better side for the first 10 minutes, they started the brighter but we got a grip of that.

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"For the next half an hour we dominated the game, for the amount of play that we had we should have increased our lead.

"In the second half we weren't as dominant but nothing from the opposition changed the flow of the game.

"It was a more even game but we were still in the ascendancy."

Frankie McAvoy said post match the he went more man for man in the second 45 to blow the game open and try and find a way back into the game.

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That change, alongside the introdutions of the substitutes seemed to work as North End did get better and ultimately went ahead.

Wilder however thought the problems lied closer to home for his team, with too many wanting to be the centre of attention.

He said: "They changed their shape a little bit but it didn't affect the game. What affected the game was our attitude towards it.

"For the period where we lost the game we played as if we were three or 4-0 up, but we weren't - we were 1-0 up.

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"If you're only 1-0 up that is not enough because of how quickly things can turn around. Even if we were 4-0 up that is not how I want to play, that is not what I'm about.

"We went individual, we tried to force it. Too many of the players were looking to be the star of the show, too many of the players were looking for that killer ball.

"We had them exactly where we wanted them at half time. For all of the things we talked about, the result was lost in the changing room because of our attitude towards the game in the second half."

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