Will Lankshear scored twice to become the first Championship player to hit double figures this season as Middlesbrough dazzled against Bolton Wanderers to go top of the Championship.

Lankshear took his league tally to 11 in just 12 games as Kim Hellberg's side turned on the style at the Toughsheet Community Stadium.

Former Bolton winger Amario Cozier-Duberry added a goal and assist after Aidan Morris opened the scoring for the Teessiders and Lewis Brunt deflected Adilson Malanda's header into his own net.

Bolton goalkeeper Gavin Bazunu stopped Wanderers losing by even more and Theo Bair's strike was of little consolation.

The game turned on 26 seconds in the 13th minute when Ruben Rodrigues shot weakly at Middlesbrough goalkeeper Radek Vitek and the visitors raced upfield to open the scoring through Morris.

Boro broke down the left and when they switched to the right, Cozier-Duberry, who helped Bolton win promotion from League One last season, centred for Morris to score from five yards out.

Rodrigues did better with a 20-yard drive, saved by Vitek, before Bazunu did well to deny Cozier-Duberry and Lankshear.

But there was no stemming the Boro tide and they sliced Bolton open on 31 minutes when Tommy Conway centred for Lankshear to tap home.

Bolton could not live with Middlesbrough and they bagged a third eight minutes later when Sebastian Berhalter sent over a corner, which should not have been given because it came off Conway, for Adilson Malanda to connect with a header, which was deflected home by Brunt.

Boro's one weakness is their leaky defence and they shipped their 17th league goal of the campaign when Gaizka Larrazabal fed Bair and he pulled a goal back in the second minute of first-half stoppage time.

Bazunu stood out for Bolton and the Republic of Ireland international made another fine stop to thwart Lankshear.

Boro were just too good, despite Bolton's second-half improvement, and Cozier-Duberry made it 4-1 on 73 minutes when he finished expertly into the roof of the net from his weaker right foot before Lankshear tapped in to finish off a rapid counter-attack.

As statement wins go, Middlesbrough wrote this one in capital letters for their Championship promotion rivals.

Bolton had improved of late, taking 10 points from a possible 15, including winning at Wolves, but never mind Storm Austen, they were blown away by Boro.

The Teessiders played at a ridiculously high tempo as they swept Bolton away and their 20 goal attempts were the most in the first half of a Championship match this season.

Hellberg's side are more than good enough to make it to the Premier League on the evidence of these scintillating 90 minutes.

In Lankshear they have one of the buys of the season and he looks an absolute bargain at £10m after the 21-year-old striker took his tally to 11 league goals and 13 in all competitions.

The only crumb of comfort for Boro's rivals is their defence and they have recorded just two clean sheets in their league campaign.

Middlesbrough manager Kim Hellberg told BBC Radio Tees:

"I'm very happy with the performance. We are an offensive team and we like to believe in ourselves. Give credit to Bolton and they were also trying to play and be aggressive and take control of the game, which I like.

"Then the games can be open and for people watching, this is why football can be back and forth and we scored some absolutely brilliant goals.

"I'm very happy with the win and how we played.

"I think the players did so good, and that was absolutely brilliant from them.

"With the goals, I think there was a beauty in terms of how we played and how good we were around the box and how many chances we created. And we created some high-level chances. So many people contributed, including five from the bench, which also is a very positive thing, and just enjoying all that in front of our away fans. Unbelievable."

Bolton Wanderers boss Steven Schumacher told BBC Radio Manchester:

"It was a tough night, a difficult game. We knew that was going to be the case before the start and it was evident there was a gulf in class tonight between the two sides, which for us to say for the first time in 12 games is respectable.

"We've been in every game that we've played this season, but tonight we were just up against a better side.

"I won't say we were off it because we tried as hard as we possibly could, but they were just better.

"They had a little bit more speed, a little bit more physicality, a lot more quality than us.

"They're really difficult to plan against because people just pop up all over different places because they're really well coached. So sometimes you've got to take it on the chin and accept it, you got beat by a team just ahead of you right now."