Luke Ayling, Middlesbrough’s strongest XI and Hellberg’s position tinkering – Boro Mailbag

In a Middlesbrough mailbag column, Craig Johns analyzes Luke Ayling's role, manager Kim Hellberg's approach to team selection, and tactical player positional shifts. Johns argues that while Ayling remains valuable to protect narrow leads late in matches, he would rank the 35-year-old fourth in the center-back hierarchy behind Ashley Phillips, Adilson Malanda, and Alfie Jones when everyone is fit.

Johns explains that Hellberg does not believe in a fixed starting XI due to fixture congestion and tactical adaptations between back-four and back-five setups. Assessing potential positional tinkering, the writer suggests David Strelec could operate effectively in a deeper role behind striker Will Lankshear, while praising Tommy Conway's transition to the left wing and the tactical versatility of Max Arfsten.