TONY PULIS has challenged his front-men to prove they can become a 20-goal a season striker in the Championship having become frustrated with Middlesbrough’s potency in front of the posts.

Boro sit level on points with leaders Leeds United at the top of the table despite only scoring 11 goals in nine matches so far, the worst return in the upper half of the second tier.

Middlesbrough will head to struggling Hull City on Saturday afternoon looking to improve on that, knowing the goals will need to flow in the remaining months of the campaign to boost their chances of staying in an automatic promotion spot.

Pulis has striker Rudy Gestede available again to compete with Britt Assombalonga, Martin Braithwaite, Jordan Hugill and Ashley Fletcher for the attacking roles.

Assombalonga and Braithwaite both lead the club’s scoring charts with three goals and their manager would like to see one of his men really step up to close in on those leading the way in the Championship’s top scorers.

Pulis said: “All of them have got good goalscoring records. You have to believe. We played two different strikers against Preston. I believe they have got good scoring records at this level, we need someone to come up out of the group and get 20 goals.

“That's what we need. To get promoted we need someone to get 20 goals. To put those tap-ins, those crosses. Because then it's 1-0 instead of 0-0. If we score early the game opens up, and that suits us.”

Gestede and Fletcher both got through 90 minutes in the midweek win at Preston in the Carabao Cup, when Middlesbrough made 11 changes in preparation for this run of three league games in eight days.

And Pulis knows that to stand a greater chance of keeping his team in the top two he will need his squad to stay united and for more goals to flow from their forward play.

He said: “We will need the strength in depth, we will get injuries, suspensions, we will get a period where people need a break. We need to have good changes. We were very pleased with the attitude on Tuesday. You hope you have people knocking on the door from the start, we have it now.

“We have looked at the stats, if you look at the teams who have been promoted over the last five years, our final third entries, our shots and crosses into the box are up there in that top group.

“We have to get on the end of them. We are lacking when we don’t get the final touch in the 18-yard box. We have to get people scoring goals.

“Even last Saturday against Swansea we had four or five good crosses into the box and didn’t get anyone on the end of them, then another at Preston in midweek.

“We will have a good chat about it. We are creating opportunities and chances we have to take them. Everybody at the club is working towards one aim, one cause, which is brilliant. They are all having a go, they are all doing their best in both boxes and hopefully the goals will come.”

Pulis feels all he can keep doing is talking the situation through with his forwards because history suggests that he has the players who can put the ball in the net – once they get on a run.

The Middlesbrough manager, who hinted there were a couple of minor knocks but nothing too serious ahead of the Hull test, added: “We will show them again. Listen the service is coming in. If the service wasn't coming in ... our final entries are well above the average for teams to get promoted, we're spending enough time in final third. We will get there.”

Gestede hasn't played since doing his ankle in pre-season but Pulis is looking forward to having his towering presence to call on.

The Middlesbrough boss said: "The game he played against Preston brilliant, to get him through 90 was fantastic.

"But he's not anywhere near what he wants to be. If you have a look at the running stats, he dropped off dramatically in the second half. What we have to do, we can't think he's played 90 and is ready to go again and again and again.

"What he needs to do now is step up the training, play some more games in Under-23s, get more time to get him to the level where we can play without him breaking down again."