MIDDLESBROUGH manager Tony Pulis celebrated the perfect timing of Daniel Ayala’s dramatic stoppage-time winner at the Riverside Stadium on Friday night before then outlining a wish to get “two or three” signings in before Thursday’s deadline for loans.

While admitting that he also expected “departures” in a TV interview away from the press room at the Riverside, Pulis then went on to stress the importance of adding the options on the wing to Boro’s ranks following Yannick Bolasie’s decision to join Aston Villa instead.

Even without the players to play as wingers, Middlesbrough extended their unbeaten start to the Championship season to five matches courtesy of Ayala’s 91st minute winner against in-form West Bromwich Albion.

That was enough to lift them to the top of the table, three points clear of Leeds United, who they face at Elland Road next Friday night.

Pulis said: “The first half we were disappointed we didn’t come in with a couple of goals at least, they are a good side and they will have spells. They have real quality and can create opportunities in seconds. They had the one chance and normally they would have scored that.

“It’s always lovely to score late on because there’s no time to recover. We had Martin Braithwaite’s chance, Jonny Howson’s header off the line, we had great opportunities to score goals.”

Pulis, whose side face Rochdale in the Carabao Cup on Tuesday night, has his eyes on a number of wingers, including Liverpool’s Sheyi Ojo, while he has been recently linked with Huddersfield’s Rajiv van la Parra as well as West Brom’s Matt Phillips and Aston Villa’s Albert Adomah.

The sale of Adama Traore to Wolves for £18m has meant the loss of his only out and out winger and he would be willing to offload Marvin Johnson if he can get new men in – which would enable him to scrap the wing-back formation serving him well so far.

“This is a system we are playing because we don’t have the wide players we have,” said Pulis. “If we can get the wide players in then we could change. But I would still like to play with two wide players. I wouldn’t be adverse to play this system again though.

“If we can’t add wide players next week then we will push on. We will try our best to get the players in and they will be better than what we have got, players have a bit between their teeth. Yannick (Bolasie) is not going to come to us.”

Pulis was able to hand Mo Besic some minutes against West Brom following his arrival from Everton on Thursday, and he sent over the free-kick that led to Ayala hitting the winner.

The former West Brom boss said: “Mo Besic has been through it a little, he looked drained today but involved in the goal and I am pleased for him. I wanted to get him on the park. Mo is a good player.

“A hell of a lot of money was spent and we have clawed it back recently. We have a responsibility to get the best in now we can sign. I am really conscious of doing it in the right way.”

Middlesbrough might have nicked the late win at the Riverside, but West Brom boss Darren Moore didn’t feel like his side had deserved to lose.

Moore said: “It was a sickener to lose so late in the game, especially when you felt you had come away from home and dominated a game in the manner we have.

“It was disappointing to concede late. The stats and the possession showed so, as the away team. To use the ball in the way we did, considering where we were, they changed the shape and system to nullify us and that tells you all you need to know.”

Asked whether he felt Ayala had handled to control before hitting the winner, Moore said: “I have only seen the goal from a deeper angle, the analysts will show me (whether it was handball). It looked handball but I can’t comment on it too much. The angle I have seen is too deep to comment.”