Middlesbrough thrashed Bolton Wanderers 5-1 on Friday night as Kim Hellberg’s team sent out a message to their promotion rivals with Will Lankshear, the team’s poster boy, on their march towards the Premier League.

Lankshear scored a brace at the Toughsheet Community Stadium, with his tally of 11 goals in 12 games making him the Championship’s leading goalscorer at the moment.

The striker swapped Tottenham for Middlesbrough in the summer transfer window. Despite signing as a golden prospect, Lankshear has quickly proved himself as one of the most lethal goalscorers in the second tier.

Here at Boro News we’ve taken a look at the data behind Lankshear’s brilliance and the tactical dynamics deployed by Kim Hellberg to ensure the talisman is one of the better served in the division.

Outpacing the Championship: Unpacking Lankshear’s elite scoring rate

To score 11 goals in 12 Championship games puts Lankshear in unrivalled territory when it comes to talismen in the second tier so far this season.

The numbers, when it comes to the former Spurs man, look pretty electric, and as a talented youngster, there will definitely be more to come from the player. Here are the main numbers of note:

• 0.98 goals per 90 minutes: Lankshear is averging pretty much a goal every single time he plays a full match. Across the EFL, no regular starting striker at any other club is matching such a superb strike rate per minute.
• Six goals in six outings: His two-goal display against Bolton has made it six goals in as many games for the player, with strikes coming in his last half a dozen matches. This goes a long way to extinguishing any notion that his start to the season was a puple patch and confirms that he’s on an elite run of form.
• Comparison across the Championship: Most top-tier strikers in the Championship average between 0.40 and 0.60 goals per 90 minutes. Lankshear is operating at double the average efficiency of strikers playing for top-six clubs, giving Boro a distinct coversion edge when tight matches happen.

Where do Will Lankshear’s chances come from?

The striker’s efficient nature isn’t down to low-probability long-range screamers. Instead, it’s built on instincts, penalty box movement and intricate tactical positions that Hellberg has worked on.

His first goal against Bolton came at the end of some brilliant football from Boro, with Tommy Conway providing a quality delivery, and his second goal was a prime example of Lankshear anticipating second phases and coming alive in the penalty box.

Lankshear’s goals tend to fall into three categories, and they have taken the following patterns this season, with Hellberg working wonders with the youngster:

1. Near-post darts across central defenders: Lankshear consistently makes sharp diagonal runs across the front of defenders to meet low cross-field balls and precise cutbacks.
2. Shoulder-rolls in behind defenders: When Boro quickly go on the counter through midfield, Lankshear plays on the shoulder of the last defensive option, and staying onside in these situations has been a huge part of his game.
3. Rebound and second-phase prowess: Lankshear has been showcasing elite poaching instincts this season, reading deflections exceptionally well, especially inside the six-yard box.

How Lankshear works with Boro teammates

Finishing the chances and getting on the score sheet naturally earns Lankshear the praise, but his high quality off-the-ball work is just as pivotal as the goals he’s scored.

Central defenders are constantly forced to drop deep to cover his theat in behind, and as a result, huge spaces often open up in and around the penalty area.

• Tommy Conway: Playing as an advanced link-man or secondary forward, Conway directly benefits from Lankshear pinning both central defenders. He regularly finds room between the lines to slide in key passes or arrive late for cutbacks into the box.
• Riley McGree: With opposition midfielders forced to retreat and protect the box against Lankshear’s movement, McGree gets time on the ball to dictate the tempo and thread through-balls into the final third.
• Amario Cozier-Duberry: As defenders move centrally to double up on Lankshear on crosses, the ex-Bolton loanee receives far more space to attack his man one-v-one down the flank. His goal against his former club on Friday showcased this.

Lankshear’s expected goals proves sustainability

When strikes are in fine form, it’s always mooted that they might not last long and soon the numbers will decrease. However, the xG metrics for Lankshear are absolutely on point and showcase that this form in this Boro team could last a little while longer.

Lankshear’s xG is fantastic, and he’s currently scoring almost three more goals than he should be based on the chances that are actually being created for him.

At 21 it’s quite scary to think how good Lankshear could be in the future. Eyebrows might have been raised when Boro parted with a fee of £10 million that could rise to £20 in the summer, but his early-season form suggests that Boro knew exactly what they were doing when they prised him away from Tottenham.