Whittaker missed 5 matches as he dealt with a muscular downside, with Boro failing to win any of these video games as they tumbled out of the automatic-promotion locations.
The winger returned to motion when he got here off the bench in final weekend’s draw at Ipswich Town, and marked his return to the beginning line-up on Wednesday evening with Boro’s winner of their 1-0 victory over Sheffield Wednesday.
That was the 25-year-old’s twelfth league aim of the season, a tally that not solely makes him Boro’s main goalscorer but in addition sees him in direction of the highest of the scoring charts because the joint seventh highest scorer within the Championship.
Throw in his six assists, and Whittaker boasts 18 aim involvements this time period, three greater than some other Boro participant, so whereas he can generally be criticised for his lack of finish product, the statistics spotlight simply how essential he’s to his facet’s attacking efforts.
“Sometimes, you don’t appreciate just how good something is when you have it,” mentioned Hellberg, forward of this lunchtime’s ultimate residence recreation of the common Championship season in opposition to Watford. “Then, while you miss it, you realise simply how essential it’s. That’s the identical manner in life generally.
“When you see Morgan in coaching now, being again, you see the standard he has with ending, how shortly he can shoot with each his left and proper foot. That is a top quality we’ve got missed, and I believe everybody can see that.
“You can see he’s a goalscorer. You can see that, and you need as many of those goalscorers on the pitch as possible. It’s been tough having some of them away, but now he’s back and you can see the impact he has.”
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Whittaker lasted for an hour of Wednesday evening’s victory earlier than making manner for Jeremy Sarmiento, with Hellberg having been eager to ease him again into motion after his lay-off.
He can be again within the beginning line-up for right this moment’s recreation with Watford, with his head coach comfortable with the way in which by which his health is regularly enhancing.
“He looked sharp and those 60 minutes will help him a lot for the further games,” mentioned Hellberg. “It was very important for him to get on the scoresheet and also to play those 60 minutes so we can hopefully increase that even more in the next few games. It’s great to have him back, I’m very happy with that.”
Whittaker’s absence coincided with a marked downturn in type and outcomes that took Boro out of the highest two. With Hayden Hackney additionally sidelined, Boro’s attacking output declined markedly as they went seven video games with out a victory and noticed their hopes of profitable automated promotion all-but-disappear.
“When we missed him [Whittaker] and Hayden at the same time, we missed the two most important players to us in terms of points gained, probably along with Tommy [Conway],” mentioned Hellberg. “They contributed with so many objectives, and it’s robust to lose them each.
“Then, of course, there’s Leo [Castledine] who we introduced in in January and who had scored 12 objectives with Huddersfield earlier than he arrived. He additionally scored loads of objectives and was coming into it, however then he missed out too.
“It was a troublesome interval of time for us. The most tough factor in soccer is placing the ball into the online, and that’s why these gamers are valued so extremely.
“It’s superb to have Morgan again now. You can see and perceive why he scored these objectives as a result of of that high quality in these moments. Then, I believe he has improved some of the opposite issues throughout my time right here.
“If I look at him, he has improved in terms of how hard he works for the team and how hard he works in reactions when we do not have the ball. I think he has grown. It was not good for us for him to be injured in that period of time, but that is also football and other people have to take their chance. It’s very good to have him back though and he’s a very important player for us.”
