Middlesborough welcome in-form Everton to the Riverside Stadium this weekend as Aitor Karanka's side will be looking to bounce back from their recent 1-0 defeat at the hands of Tottenham.

Boro have struggled since the turn of the year, failing to win a Premier League game - a run of form that has seen them fall to 15th position and only one point above the relegation zone.

The visitors, on the other hand, have had a very different start to the new year. The Toffees have won four of their six fixtures in 2017, including their recent demolition job against Bournemouth in which Romelu Lukaku scored four in a thrilling 6-3 encounter.

Everton now sit comfortably in 7th position and only six points behind the top four.

If Boro are to have a turn in fortune, they will have to be back at their very best in order to topple Ronald Koeman's rampant Everton, and will certainly not want a repeat of the same fixture earlier in the season where they were beaten comprehensively 3-1 at Goodison Park.

These are the three key battles that will decide the match...

Romelu Lukaku vs. Bernardo

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What a game this boy had against Bournemouth. Not only did he score four goals, but he scored four fabulous goals. The big Belgian looked at it right from the off, and continually tore the Cherries defence to pieces all afternoon as they failed to cope with his physicality and movement.

The Premier League's in-form striker will be a hard man to stop for Boro centre back Bernardo, who has been part of a defence that has failed to keep a clean sheet in their last three outings. Expect Lukaku to give the Colombian a runaround he won't be forgetting any time soon.

Adama Traore vs. Leighton Baines

One of Boro's main weaknesses this season has been their lack of goals. Top scorer Alvaro Negredo has seven, and behind him is Christhian Stuani with four. If they continue in the same vein, Aitor Karanka and his men are destined for the drop.

While he hasn't scored at all this season, their main threat going forward is young Adama Traore, who was singed from Aston Villa in the summer. Pacy, explosive and confident, Traore is brilliant when running at the defenders.

Leighton Baines will be tasked with the job of keeping the former Barca winger quiet and preventing him from supplying the dangerous Negredo with balls into the middle of the box. However, the former England man is a dangerous attacking asset himself and Traore will have to track back.

Marten De Roon vs. James McCarthy

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Middlesbrough's Marten de Roon celebrates scoring their first goal
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It wasn't long ago there were calls for the departure of James McCarthy from Goodison Park, as his form last season dipped and his displays for Ireland during the Euro 2016 campaign were poor. The Irishman didn't have a brilliant start to the season either, but he's shown his resilience with some good performances recently.

His opposing number Marten De Roon has been one of the stand-out performers for Boro so far this season, looking calm and composed in front of the back four whilst being able to burst forward and bag himself a goal too.