Reading favourite Andy Carroll is hoping to correct the wrongs of the Cardiff City defeat as the team prepare to travel to Middlesbrough.

The former England star captained the Royals team which lost 1-0 to the Bluebirds last month, frustrating the supporters as the team failed to even get a shot on target.

Bouncing back and finding the net in a 3-1 win over Blackpool on Saturday, the former Liverpool and West Ham regular wants to use the negative feeling of defeats in a positive manner.

"We were poor at Cardiff last week and we knew that, so we took the criticism that came our way," the 34-year-old admitted. "We know ourselves when we haven't played well and no one needs to tell us, so we put it right today and we've been working hard this week - we'll do the same again in the build-up to Middlesbrough."

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Heading up toward his native North-East, the Premier League veteran has impressed since his return for a second spell in Berkshire- scoring six goals and getting an assist.

Boro, under the management of former Manchester United and England star Michael Carrick, has risen from second-bottom to third in the Championship, aiming for a return to the top-flight.

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Despite losing 2-0 to West Brom last week, the Teessiders are one of the in-form teams.

"I say it all the time - it's a tough league. It doesn't matter if you're playing the top team or the bottom team, it's going to be a difficult game," Carroll said. "We've just got to play like we did against Blackpool and give 100%, not fall into the trap of thinking we've won a game and can relax. We're going into the next game to win and the one after that again. That's what we need to have in this team."