Barnsley moved to within six points of safety after winning back to back league games for the first time this season.
It is the first time they have won successive Championship matches since April 2021 when they won back to back at Huddersfield and at home to Rotherham.
Mads Andersen gave the Reds the lead after just seven minutes, the earliest the Reds have led in a match since August when Callum Styles opened the scoring after six minutes against Birmingham.
Andersen is the first defender to score a league goal for Barnsley since Toby Sibbick on the opening day at Cardiff.
He is the first defender to score a league goal for the Reds at Oakwell since Michal Helik against Millwall exactly a year ago.
Andersen is the first Barnsley defender to open the scoring in a league game since Helik at Bournemouth in March 2021.
Amine Bassi doubled the Reds advantage after 16 minutes, the earliest Barnsley have been two goals ahead in a match since December 2020 when they led 2-0 at Rotherham after 15 minutes.
Barnsley have been ahead at half time in successive matches for the first time since December 2020 – v Wycombe and Sheffield Wednesday.
It is the first time they have been at least two goals ahead at half time in successive matches since February 2019 against Scunthorpe and Accrington Stanley in League One.
It is the first time it has happened at Championship level since November/December 2011 v at Leeds and Peterborough.
Bassi went on to make it 3-0 in the second half, the first Barnsley Championship brace since Daryl Dike at Luton in April 2021.
Barnsley scored three times in a league game for the first time this season and first time since a 3-1 win at Wycombe in March 2021.
It is their first three goal haul at Oakwell since a 3-0 win over QPR in October 2020.
Middlesbrough almost staged the ultimate comeback, pulling it back to 3-1 with a penalty – only the second goal conceded from the spot this season but the second in five outings (also at Luton)
The penalty was scored by Andraz Sporar who has scored both home and away against Barnsley this season.
It then became 3-2 in injury time due to a Liam Kitching own goal, Barnsley’s first own goal since Victor Adeboyejo at Swansea in December 2020.
That own goal arrived on 90+5, the latest Barnsley have conceded a goal since February 2019 when Joe Jacobson scored a consolation penalty for Wycombe on 90+10.
However Barnsley have conceded an injury time goal in two of their past three matches – prior to this they hadn’t conceded after 90 minutes since mid August at QPR.
This is the second 3-2 game Barnsley have been involved in this season (following a 3-2 home defeat to Sheffield United)
However it is Barnsley’s third 3-2 victory over Middlesbrough in their last 13 meetings.
Bassi assisted Andersen’s goal whilst Morris set up both of Bassi’s - between them Morris and Bassi have been directly involved in each of Barnsley’s last five goals (Morris scoring one and assisting two with Bassi scoring twice and assisting one)
Morris is the first Barnsley player to assist two goals since Callum Brittain against Derby in November – those two players are now Barnsley’s top assisters this season with three each and Morris has equalled his total from 2020-2021.
This win lifted Barnsley off the bottom of the league for the first time since the end of December whereas 22nd is their highest position since beating Derby back in November.
Goalkeeper Brad Collins was booked, his FOURTH yellow card of the season and his seventh for the club.
Two weeks ago Barnsley had failed to open the scoring under Asbaghi (12 games) they have now done so in three of the last four matches.
Each of the last six meetings between Barnsley and Middlesbrough have alternated between a victory for each side with the home side winning on each occasion.
The Reds are unbeaten in the last six league Oakwell clashes, winning five including each of the last three.
Middlesbrough won 12 corners, the most by a Barnsley opponent at Oakwell this season.
Barnsley had less overall shots than Middlesbrough (7-16) but more on target (5-4), the third time such a feat has occurred this season (also the home meetings with Hull and Bournemouth)
Barnsley Team:
40. Brad Collins
2. Jordan Williams
30. Michal Helik
6. Mads Andersen
26. Remy Vita
33. Matty Wolfe
17. Claudio Gomes
4. Callum Styles
27. Amine Bassi
28. Domingos Quina
14. Carlton Morris
Substitutes:
5. Liam Kitching (for Vita 68)
7. Callum Brittain (for Bassi 69)
44. Devante Cole (for Morris 78)
Unused Substitutes:
1. Jack Walton, 10. Josh Benson, 21. Romal Palmer, 24. Aapo Halme.
Middlesbrough Team:
1. Joe Lumley
6. Dael Fry
17. Paddy McNair
2. Anfernee Dijksteel
23. James Léa Siliki
7. Marcus Tavernier
35. Isaiah Jones
3. Neil Taylor
16. Jonathan Howson
18. Duncan Watmore
11. Andraz Sporar
Substitutions:
26. Aaron Connolly (for Léa Siliki 45)
47. Folarin Balogun (for Watmore 45)
50. Caolan Boyd-Munce (for Taylor 69)
Unused Substitutes:
28. Luke Daniels, 22. Sol Bamba, 14. Lee Peltier, 37. Josh Coburn.
Middlesbrough manager Chris Wilder said:
"The attitude of the team was ok - they were just really poor goals. We were away from home against a team fighting for their lives and we can't concede really poor goals, and we did.
"It's not that they carved us open, they've not done anything that's spectacular, the back three were far too deep and they weren't aggressive enough.
"We talk about the way we play, it's possession based, but the game isn't always about what you do in possession, it's about the other part of it.
"Goals are going in too easy and we have to sort that out, we have to shut the back door before we try and open the front door."
Match Reports:
Sky Bet Championship Results
SATURDAY 26TH FEBRUARY 2022
Blackburn Rovers (4th) 1-0 Queens Park Rangers (5th)
Khadra 77
BARNSLEY (22nd) 3-2 Middlesbrough (8th)
Andersen 7
Bassi 16
Bassi 54
Sporar pen 61
Kitching og 90+5
Birmingham City (19th) 0-2 Huddersfield Town (3rd)
Colwill 27
O’Brien 44
Blackpool (14th) 4-1 Reading (21st)
Lucas Joao 17
Ekpiteta 27
Madine 61
Lavery 86
Bowler 90
AFC Bournemouth (2nd) 2-1 Stoke City (15th)
Smith 20
Solanke 83
Lowe 89
Cardiff City (20th) 0-1 Fulham (1st)
Mitrovic 41
Coventry City (10th) 1-1 Preston North End (12th)
Johnson pen 89
Tavares 90+8
Luton Town (6th) 1-0 Derby County (23rd)
Hylton 67
Millwall (11th) 1-0 Sheffield United (7th)
Cooper 61
Nottingham Forest (9th) 2-0 Bristol City (17th)
Johnson 38
Garner 55
Peterborough United (24th) 0-3 Hull City (18th)
Smith 25
Lewis-Potter 51
Lewis-Potter 70
MONDAY 28TH FEBRUARY 2022
West Bromwich Albion (13th) 0-2 Swansea City (16th)
Piroe 79
Christie 84
Barnsley lie in 22nd place in the Sky Bet Championship with 23 points from 33 games. We are 31 points off the Play-Offs, 38 points off the Automatic Promotion Places, 47 points off First Place and 6 points inside the Relegation Zone.
Up to 28/02/22
Next Up:
On The Road:
Sky Bet Championship Matchday Thirty Four: Derby County v Barnsley, Saturday 5th March 2022. Kick-Off: 3pm
At Oakwell:
Sky Bet Championship Matchday Thirty Five: Barnsley v Stoke City, Tuesday 8th March 2022. Kick-Off: 7:45pm