AITOR KARANKA expected Jordan Rhodes to have scored more goals in his first two-and-a-half months as a Middlesbrough player, but with five games of the season to go, the head coach remains confident the club’s £9m striker will play a pivotal role in the promotion run-in.

Rhodes will head to Bolton Wanderers tomorrow looking to claim what would be just his third goal since joining Middlesbrough in January, with Tuesday’s 2-1 win over Reading having represented his 11th goalless appearance for the Teessiders.

His two successes came against MK Dons and QPR, although his previous performances with Blackburn means he stands on 13 goals for the campaign.

His fellow forward, David Nugent, has scored eight goals since the start of the season, and while he presides over a side sitting on top of the table, Karanka admits he would have anticipated both players scoring more. He does, however, cite mitigating factors for their struggles, especially when it comes to Rhodes.

“I don’t want to fool you - I would like to have David with 15 or 20 goals and Jordan with 8 or ten,” said Karanka. “But the main thing for me is that even when they’re not scoring, other players are.

“Jordan is feeling that he’s not playing in the same way as he did at Blackburn. At Blackburn, he was just ready to stop the ball, to get into the box - but now he’s working a lot for the team. Our style is completely different than Blackburn’s style, so for that reason I’m not concerned with him.”

Karanka selected Rhodes in the starting line-up for Tuesday’s dramatic late victory, and while a perceived tension between the two figures was cited as a factor in the chaos that resulted in the head coach not being present for last month’s Charlton game, there is every chance that Rhodes will remain in the starting line-up tomorrow.

He has come close to adding to his tally on a number of occasions, most notably when his close-range effort against Reading forced the save from Ali Al-Habsi that resulted in Emilio Nsue driving home the rebound.

There is still a sense of Middlesbrough’s players not really playing to Rhodes’ strengths, but Karanka remains confident the Scotsman will prove an influential figure in the final five games.

“A player who is a goalscorer will always score goals,” he said. “It’s not a problem, especially when we have other players who are scoring.

“I would have been concerned if Jordan was here for three months and didn't have one chance. He's had a lot of chances and it means that one day, he'll start to score goals. For that reason, it's not a concern for me.”

More of a worry is ensuring there is no repeat of Boro’s recent failure to win at MK Dons, Rotherham and Charlton, all clubs who currently occupy a position in the bottom four.

Bolton are by far and away the worst team in the division, having already been relegated with a total of 26 points from 41 games, so in theory, tomorrow’s game should result in a comfortable victory for the visitors.

Things are rarely that simple though, and Karanka will be doing everything he can to ensure his players do not adopt the same sloppy mental approach that proved so costly at Rotherham in particular.

“The best lesson we can learn is from what’s happened this season,” he said. “It’s easy to explain - we went to Rotherham expecting an easy game and had a lot of chances, but didn't score. In the second half we didn't play in our way and lost.

“We went to Bristol City after a great run through December and January, and lost. We went to Charlton - it was different as everyone knows what happened that weekend - but we lost. For that reason, the best lesson is to learn what happened in those games.

“Always when you play against these kind of teams, it's a mental thing. When you have to defend then you're (too) confident because you think you're better than them. And when you have to score, you’re confident but not focused on the chance, then you miss. That happened against Rotherham.”

Boro head to the Macron Stadium for a 12.30pm kick-off, and while third-placed Brighton take on Fulham this evening, Burnley do not face Birmingham until the Teessiders have completed their game.

By that stage, the Clarets could be five points behind Boro, and Karanka is urging his players to do whatever they can to put pressure on Sean Dyche’s team.

Last season, Boro played a number of their most crucial matches after their rivals had already won, and Karanka admits the scheduling of games can make a huge difference in the final month of the campaign.

“Maybe it will be an advantage,” he said. “It is always about momentum, and ours is really good, so for that reason it could be an advantage.

“We played on Tuesday (against Reading), and Brighton had played on the Monday. We knew they had scored a late winner (at Nottingham Forest), and for us it could have been a little bit of pressure. The team was really good though.

“Last season, it was difficult because I remember when we played against Fulham, Watford had already won their game. We felt that pressure to beat Fulham, but I think this season we are really confident.  We have a better squad, and are more mature.”