Middlesbrough striker Patrick Bamford has said that he is excited by the Championship promotion race.

Boro are currently third in the table, level on points with the top two, and five teams are within three points of league leaders Bournemouth.

Middlesbrough beat Ipswich 4-1 last weekend to keep pace at the top of the league, with Bamford scoring twice.

"We'd rather play teams like this rather than those who are scrapping to stay in the league," Bamford told BBC Sport.

"To go to teams like Derby and Bournemouth makes it a massive game with where we are in the league.

"I've heard recently as a team we've been getting a bit of stick for maybe not scoring as many goals as the other teams like Bournemouth who have scored freely. To be able to put on a good show for the fans is really good, especially on TV."

Bamford, on loan from Chelsea, has scored 15 goals for Middlesbrough this season.