GARRY MONK thinks it would be unfair to criticise his Middlesbrough players after creating plenty of chances that should have avoided a second away defeat at Nottingham Forest.

After back-to-back home wins at the Riverside, Monk had it hoped his new-look Boro would have been able to build on that by recording a positive result at the City Ground.

Despite carving out the openings to have at least drawn the game, though, Middlesbrough were left to rue a number of wasted opportunities; with former Forest man Britt Assombalonga left frustrated on his return to his old ground.

Monk said: “I can’t be critical of any of them. Barring that first 20 minutes, and even then I don’t feel we were being cut open and they were creating loads of chances, I can’t focus on anyone to criticise. We created enough.

“Sometimes it happens in football and this was one of those games. We have to take it on the chin and move on.

“We are disappointed not to get the result today. Once they got the goal we got to grips with them and created some really good chances. We should have taken them. We created more than enough to win this game. The players feel hard done by in there to lose it.”

Middlesbrough were a goal down inside 16 minutes when Barrie McKay stroked in a fine opener. That was how it remained until Ben Gibson pulled down Ben Brereton in the box and Daryl Murphy converted the spot-kick with 11 minutes remaining.

Gibson made amends by pulling one back with a goal of his own to set up a frantic final seven minutes but Nottingham Forest held on and left Middlesbrough staring at a second away defeat in as many matches.

Monk said: “We have done enough in pretty much all of the games to suggest we should have won. I have spoken to them about what we need to get better at and those are that we need to start the games better, show the intensity we showed later on in those first 20 minutes. We can’t give teams an advantage.

“After that we need to take half chances. It is hard to be critical of the team when you know we have done more than enough. On another day we would have won that game. We want to win games regularly and we have to be ready for the next two games.”