MK Dons vs Middlesbrough match report: Boro back at summit after Jordan Rhodes scores first goal for new club and rescues a point

Jordan Rhodes is still waiting to start a game as a Middlesbrough player but the striker showed his unerring scoring touch by stepping off the bench to head the last-minute equaliser against MK Dons that lifted his new club to the top of the Championship.

Boro’s £9m January signing has averaged a goal every 1.9 games in his career yet he had only 14 minutes to show the Riverside what he could do on his home debut against Blackburn at the weekend and, to the frustration of the travelling fans who chanted his name as he sat on the bench here, was kept waiting once more.

It was not until the 69th minute that Boro manager Aitor Karanka sent him on but Rhodes duly did what he does best by sending a looping header past David Martin from Ritchie de Laet’s cross to cancel out Dean Bowditch’s early goal for the home side.

With it Boro climbed a point above Hull City at the top of the table and salvaged something from a hitherto frustrating evening. They had arrived in Milton Keynes with just one point from their previous three matches and the poor run looked poised to continue after they fell behind to a preventable goal after nine minutes.

Centre-back Ben Gibson failed to deal with Kyle McFadzean’s ball over the Boro back line and Bowditch punished him by turning and squeezing a low shot under Dimi Konstantopoulos.

At the other end, Boro’s lack of a cutting edge was clear to see in the first half. Karanka had selected debutant Gaston Ramirez, on loan from Southampton, to add some creativity, yet kept Rhodes in reserve with David Nugent starting as the lone striker in the Spaniard’s favoured 4-2-3-1 system.

For the first 45 minutes Boro dominated possession but their approach play was laboured and the final ball missing – only Christhian Stuani had a sniff of goal. Played in by Nugent, though, the Uruguayan was thwarted by the legs of the goalkeeper, Martin.

Booed off at the break by the travelling fans, Karanka’s men did improve after the restart. Nugent should have equalised in the 50th minute after riding two challenges but clear in front of goal, he drove wide. De Laet went close too when following up the rebound from a parried Stuani effort but the loanee from Leicester saw his shot cleared off the line by McFadzean.

MK Dons were looking to move five points clear of the relegation places and might have wrapped up three points but for a fine late save by Konstantopoulos to deny substitute Nicky Maynard. Instead up stepped that man Rhodes to save Boro.

MK Dons (4-2-3-1): Martin; Baldock, McFadzean, Walsh, Lewington; Forster-Caskey, Carruthers; Bowditch (Maynard, 70), Emmanuel-Thomas (Potter, 62), Murphy; Revell (Spence, 84). Substitutes not used Cropper (gk), Powell, Williams, Hall.

Middlesbrough (4-2-3-1): Konstantopoulos; Nsue, Kalas, Gibson, De Laet; Leadbitter, Forshaw (Rhodes, 69); Stuani (De Pena, 69), Ramirez (Sola, 85), Downing; Nugent. Substitutes not used Mejias (gk), Clayton, De Sart, Fry.

Referee A Davies (Hampshire).