Potentially just 90 minutes away from reaching the EFL Cup quarter-finals for the first time ever, Exeter City pit their wits against Championship opposition in the shape of Middlesbrough on Tuesday evening.
One of the three lowest-ranked teams left in the tournament, the hosts shocked Premier League new boys Luton Town in round three, while Michael Carrick's team sunk Bradford City 2-0.
Match preview
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A 2-1 success over Crawley Town and penalty-shootout beating of Stevenage were hardly inspiring results from Exeter in the first two rounds of this year's EFL Cup, but not even top-tier opposition in Luton Town - who played with an extra man for the final few moments - could spoil the St James Park parade in the last 32.
Indeed, Demetri Mitchell's 83rd-minute effort was sufficient to dump the Hatters out of the tournament and propel Exeter into the fourth round for only the second time in their history, having also got as far in 1989-90 before losing a two-legged tie with Sunderland.
However, that memorable beating of the Hatters represents Exeter's most recent victory in any competition, as Gary Caldwell's men embarked on a miserable six-game losing streak in the wake of that giant killing, which was only ended in Saturday's 1-1 draw with Lincoln City.
As such, the Grecians are languishing in 17th place in the League One table heading into the winter months, meaning that Exeter enter the fourth round as the second lowest-ranked team left gunning for glory, only above League Two promotion-chasers Mansfield Town in the pyramid.
Ryan Trevitt's equalising header versus Lincoln did at least see Lincoln snap their four-game sequence without a goal, but the Grecians have failed to net more than once in a competitive fixture since sinking Reading 2-1 in August, only breaching the opposition seven times in their subsequent 14 games.
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While Exeter have not been able to buy a victory in league action, it was a completely different story for Middlesbrough until Stoke City visited the Riverside Stadium on Saturday, as the Potters halted the Michael Carrick-led juggernaut in its tracks.
Boro had come up trumps in seven successive matches before Stoke came to town, but they were caught cold from a corner just eight minutes in as Michael Rose headed home, before Mehdi Leris produced a smart finish across goal to rubber-stamp the Potters' triumph.
As well as halting Middlesbrough's magnificent winning run, Stoke also became the first team since Queens Park Rangers on September 3 to quell the Boro attack, bringing an end to the visitors' nine-game scoring sequence to demote them to 10th place in the table.
Boro's playoff charge is far from dead and buried, but thoughts of a top-six surge take a backseat as the 2004 EFL Cup champions seek a first quarter-final outing since the 2018-19 campaign, when their dreams of glory were crushed by Burton Albion in the last eight.
All three of Boro's EFL Cup wins this term have come away from the Riverside - getting the better of Huddersfield Town, Bolton Wanderers and Bradford on rival soil - but Carrick's team have never squared off with Exeter in a competitive setting before.
Team News
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Only five minutes after coming up with the winning goal against Luton, Exeter left-back Mitchell was given his marching orders for a second bookable offence, but he is fine to feature here after serving his ban in a League One clash with Northampton Town.
However, fellow defender Pierce Sweeney was cautioned for the second time in the 2023-24 tournament in the third round and will miss the visit of Boro through suspension, although he was only a substitute in the beating of Luton anyway.
In terms of injuries, Jack Aitchison and Reece Cole were both forced off before the conclusion of their draw with Lincoln, so the likes of Tom Carroll, Kyle Taylor and Yanic Wildschut may be called upon from the first whistle.
As for Boro, the visitors' defeat to Stoke can be somewhat attributed to their unenviable injury situation, which worsened last week as defender Tommy Smith sustained an Achilles problem, which is expected to bring a premature end to his 2023-24 campaign.
Marcus Forss (thigh), Riley McGree (foot), Darragh Lenihan (Achilles) and Lewis O'Brien (ankle) are also in the care of the medical team, but one piece of good news arrives in the form of Hayden Hackney's return from suspension.
Both Hackney and Lukas Engel have also shaken off knocks sustained in a recent win over Norwich City, while Emmanuel Latte Lath was fit enough to appear as a substitute against Stoke following an illness and is an option for change up top.
Exeter City possible starting lineup:
Sinisalo; Fitzwater, Aimson, Hartridge; Mitchell, Carroll, Trevitt, Harper; Muskwe, Scott, Wildschut
Middlesbrough possible starting lineup:
Glover; Dijksteel, Fry, Clarke, Engel; Hackney, Barlaser; Silvera, Rogers, Gilbert; Latte Lath
We say: Exeter City 0-2 Middlesbrough
Plagued by constant attacking shortcomings and also far from watertight in defence, Exeter's EFL Cup journey appears destined to end at St James Park, even with Boro sure to rotate their injury-hit resources.
Carrick acknowledged that his side fell short of their usual standards against Stoke, but we have faith in Boro to get back on track and seal a quarter-final place with minimal fuss.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Ben Knapton
