AITOR KARANKA admitted he made mistakes which led to Middlesbrough’s 2-0 defeat to Sheffield Wednesday.

Boro missed the opportunity to go top of the Championship following Derby’s defeat at Fulham after goals from Atdhe Nuhiu and Will Keane earned Stuart Gray’s men their first home win since Boxing Day.

Karanka made five changes to his starting line-up and left out captain Grant Leadbitter, George Friend and Lee Tomlin, and the Boro head coach admitted after the game at Hillsborough that he made some wrong decisions.

“I made mistakes and we have lost the game,” the Spaniard said. “The performance was bad for everybody and we’ve lost three points. I came here to win the game and to win three points but I have learned a lot of things from the last two or three games and I have to think about the future.

“I can’t say what mistakes I made. I have to learn from them and I have to improve in the following games.”

Boro remain second in the table but Watford’s win at Leeds means the gap to third is down to one point ahead of Tuesday night’s match with Millwall at the Riverside Stadium.