Boro’s play-off hopes were hanging by a thread when they entered the half-time break of Saturday’s game trailing 1-0, but a much-improved second-half performance saw Kelechi Iheanacho claim an equaliser before Borges swept home a winner with ten minutes left.
The victory has lifted the Teessiders to seventh position in the table, level on points with sixth-placed West Brom ahead of Friday night’s trip to Ewood Park to take on Blackburn Rovers.
Michael Carrick’s side have seven more games to play, and Borges regards a play-off place as a realistic target provided he and his team-mates continue to hit the levels they reached in the final 45 minutes at the weekend.
“(It was) a much-needed three points, and we knew the importance of getting that,” said the Brazilian defender. “First half, we were too slow, but second half, we chased the game and I’m proud of the lads for the way we approached the game in a different way.
“That’s the way we must carry on now with seven games left. It’s even better, with the results elsewhere, but now, we have to make sure we carry on with the character we had in the second half and keep winning games or getting as many points as we can. Hopefully, by the end of the season, we can be in the play-offs where we want to be.”
With his side trailing at the weekend, Carrick urged his players to take their fate into their own hands when he spoke to them at the half-time interval.
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His pleas elicited the desired response, but with Boro’s players having underperformed in the first half, Borges accepts standards cannot be allowed to slip at any stage in the remaining seven games.
“The message from the gaffer was, ‘If we want to change something, we have to change it now’, he said. “We knew we had to change. I hope now that we approach every game in the way that we approached the second half.
“We have an incredible team and incredible players – it’s just a case of having the mentality to say, ‘Guys, come on!’
“There are seven games to go, and I know we have changed our mentality, and I think you could see that in the second half. Now, the talking on the training ground is going to be all about ensuring we do our best every day. We saw in the second half what we can do – that’s the mentality we have to carry on now.”
Borges has spent the vast majority of his career playing at left-back, but with a raft of defensive injuries having decimated Boro’s squad, he has spent the last three games partnering Jonny Howson at centre-half.
His performances have been a key factor in the Teessiders taking seven points from a possible nine, and while he never previously saw himself as a centre-half, Borges has been delighted with the way in which he has successfully adapted to his new role.
“Sometimes, you’ve just got to do what the gaffer wants you to do,” said the Brazilian. “I’ve had troubles throughout the season adapting to English football, but now I consider myself to be fully adapted to the way, to the style, to the physicality.
“In football, you just need to be ready to play wherever the gaffer needs you. That’s my mentality. Do my best whenever I have the chance to play football.
“I just want to be on the pitch wherever that is. I just try to give my best and enjoy my football. That’s what I’m here for.
“The decision (on where he plays) is for the gaffer, and I will just ensure every day on the training ground I do everything I have to do to be ready for game days. That’s the gaffer’s decision and I won’t be sad either way with whatever that decision is. I just want to be on the pitch and giving my best and doing what I know how to do best.”
