GARRY MONK has defended his decision to leave big-name players out of his Middlesbrough squad, and admits his is hoping to spark a reaction from some of his underperforming stars as he looks to get the Teessiders’ season back on track.

Boro host Ipswich Town this afternoon with Monk’s position having come under increased scrutiny in the wake of back-to-back defeats to Derby County and Bristol City.

The Boro boss desperately needs a win to close the six-point gap currently separating his side from the play-off places, and his starting selection will be closely scrutinised after some controversial calls in the last few weeks.

Adam Clayton found himself frozen out of the first-team picture for the best part of a month, and having been a pivotal performer for much of the season, Grant Leadbitter was surprisingly axed from the first-team squad at Ashton Gate last weekend.

“Sometimes you do it (leave players out of the squad) for a response, and you need to test players,” said Monk, who has Daniel Ayala available this afternoon after the defender completed a one-match suspension following his dismissal against Derby. “I know the players now, but you need to get to know them even better and see what type of mentality or character they have in response to a situation like that.

“Sometimes, they might deserve to be in the squad, but you have to think about what you might need on the bench and how the game might go. The majority of the time, they don’t deserve to be out of the squad, but someone has to be. Sometimes, though, they deserve not to make it.”

Leadbitter’s position is especially interesting as the midfielder had been one of Boro’s most consistent performers prior to his demotion.

The former skipper has started ten Championship games this season, with six resulting in a Middlesbrough win. Boro have suffered just two defeats with Leadbitter in the starting line-up, yet he was overlooked for Jonny Howson and Adam Forshaw last weekend.

It will be interesting to see whether he returns to the fold this afternoon, with Monk admitting he is facing some difficult decisions as he presides over a fully-fit squad. He must decide whether to stick with Adama Traore, who was recalled last weekend, ahead of Marcus Tavernier or Marvin Johnson, and could shuffle his attacking line-up by starting with a fit-again Rudy Gestede.

“It’s inevitable that some people have to miss out because of the type of squad we have,” said Monk. “There will be questions asked about whichever player you leave out.

“It could be someone who has done brilliantly before, or it could be a new player you’ve brought in. If you leave them out, people will always ask why. Unfortunately, you can only have 18 players in the squad.

“It’s not to say the players that are left out don’t deserve to be in the squad – more often than not, they 100 per cent deserve to be there and sometimes deserve to be playing. But you can only pick an 18-man squad so that topic will always come up.

“But the reasons behind your thinking are not always what other people think, or like to imagine. The fact of is it that I can only pick 18 players for a match-day squad, so there are always going to be players you would normally think would be in the squad or the team. Sometimes it is for the reason people might think, sometimes it’s not. It’s just the squad you have to pick.”