Thanks for that. He looks very good. Let’s hope he can reproduce that kind of passing and shooting for us.
Engel-land Engel-land Engel-Land
He does look good and quite similar to Giles.
UTB
let’s hope he’s Fintastic !
Let's hope so even though he's Danish. I can't think of too many other Danes. Martin Braithwaite was a quality player but didn't fit with the then management and decided that he wanted out. Other than Mikkel Beck, are there many others.
UTB
Well done to the Lionesses on reaching the World Cup Final 👍
Come on BORO.
If this Latte is the new Archer ,then the no10 role is going to be very important,Archer had Chuba as a foil, right now Carrick hasn't settled on one, for me Mcgree is perfect, if not him then who? Poyet or Morgan neither of them will get the goals we need, I think the optimism two weeks ago , might be waning , COB
I was disappointed that Chuba left Boro. Finally he had found a manager who trusted him and he was played in the correct position. After several years in different clubs on loan, he was settled in Middlesbrough. So I was a bit surprised he choose to take a risk.
The Dutch league is no where near the level of the Champioship. So for me it is a step down. Of course Ajax is a bigger club than Boro but the league is not the same as the Championship. So he should score some goals. Remember Alves scoring goals for a small club in their league.
OK, he can play in the Europe, like wise had he joined Celtic or Rangers. But professionally I see that as a step down. And money wise they cannot compete with the Man City, Newcastle, Bayern Munchen, Barcelona or Real Madrid in the European competitions anymore. The money is not just there.
Anyway, he is a wonderful person and I hope him all the best. I also hope Morgan or McGree can fill the void left at nr 10 position.
Up the Boro!
At 28 years old a four year contract at an increased salary is a huge chance for him and his family and I don’t begrudge him taking this opportunity. It may also give him a better chance of making the Nigerian national team with Ajax meaning a lot more the MFC.
I wish him the best of luck. He gave us 100% for a great season. This time last year nobody would have expected such a result and such a transfer fee.
utb
It was inevitable that Akpom would leave in this window given he was in the final year of his contract and Boro couldn't offer him a new contract as a Championship club anywhere near what top-flight clubs could afford.
Leaving on free in 12 months was the only other option and that would be very bad business for Boro to turn down £10-12m and gamble he'd fire them to promotion - especially given he'd be free to negotiate a new contract with other clubs in January.
Unfortunately, the system doesn't allow you to keep players in their final year if they have significant value - Harry Kane being the more high-profile example.
I suppose we should just look at it as a bonus given as Selwynoz mentioned that nobody would have expected to gain over £10m from Akpom 12 months ago - let alone 30 goals!
He essential became another loan player by becoming Championship player of the season as Boro were no longer in a position to afford his services for another year unless they were promoted.
@werdermouth Someone also said that since 2016, the golden boot winner in the Championship has never stayed with the club they played for if it didn't get promoted.
Really, our only hope with Chuba was that no one would offer him a contract that suited him and us. As he's only had one stand out year and few middling years for PAOK, and he's almost 28, it is a bit of a risk for Ajax too. To be honest, his agent seems to have done a fantastic job on Chuba's behalf and, at least, we are £10m richer than we expected this time 12 months ago.
5 years and likely doubling his money plus, if he scores 20+ goals for Ajax this year and does well in Europe, he can expect another step up in 2 years.
@werdermouth Someone also said that since 2016, the golden boot winner in the Championship has never stayed with the club they played for if it didn't get promoted.
Really, our only hope with Chuba was that no one would offer him a contract that suited him and us. As he's only had one stand out year and few middling years for PAOK, and he's almost 28, it is a bit of a risk for Ajax too. To be honest, his agent seems to have done a fantastic job on Chuba's behalf and, at least, we are £10m richer than we expected this time 12 months ago.
5 years and likely doubling his money plus, if he scores 20+ goals for Ajax this year and does well in Europe, he can expect another step up in 2 years.
Reference your last paragraph, if he scores 20+ goals for Ajax this season it is likely Boro will get a good percentage, if not all, the add ons.
Comeon BORO.
Like others above, I wish Chuba Akpom well at Ajax. That was always one of my favourite European clubs.
I realise it was unlikely he'd stay at Boro if we failed to be promoted. When Boro was still in with a chance of going up but some were saying "It's too early for Boro to go up; they're not ready and would come straight back down next season so it would be better to go up NEXT season", I am sure I gave my opinion that you have to take your opportunity when it is there because it may be less likely to reappear next season. A club's better players may be picked off by other clubs with deeper pockets, your key players might suffer injuries in that second season and, of course, three relegated Premier League clubs WILL appear in the league with their parachute payments and some of their Premier League squads still available. There is certainly no guarantee that you will get a second chance so you have to grab it when it is there the first time. Even if you are relegated after only one season, you have parachute payments which transform a club's finances.
Will Akpom score 29 goals next season (it was 29 wasn't it?) or even exceed that at Ajax? Well, he could. But it would be a surprise. Last season was his only prolific season so far in his career and he is, by now, an experienced player who has been around for quite a few seasons. If, in previous seasons and/or with various clubs, he had shown progression by scoring say 6 goals in his debut season, then 10 goals, then 14, 17, 20, 25 then 29 goals, you'd be fairly confident in assuming this was a player on an upward trend throughout his career and, therefore, someone from whom you could expect a very good haul of goals in the years to come. In Akpom's case I would have been surprised if he'd scored 20 goals this season if he'd stayed at Boro (and probably more like 14-15).
Akpom scored 0 goals in his first 21 games at Arsenal and when on loan to Brentford, Coventry and Forest, so it wasn't until an extended loan to Hull City when he scored 3 goals from 36 appearances that he opened his senior account, followed by 0 in 10 when on loan to Brighton (is there a better team at finding and improving talent?), 6 in 16 at Belgian club Sint-Truidense and then finally 7 in 34 games when on loan at PAOK in Greece. In other words, until he came to Boro, Akpom had scored 23 goals in 137 appearances (approximately a goal every 6 games). He actually went back to PAOK on loan in 2021-22 when a Boro player and scored a further 7 from 34 games so, in total at other clubs he has scored 30 from 171 appearances (slightly above 1 goal every 6 games). At Boro he scored 33 goals in 79 appearances but obviously that included his "annus mirabiis" last season when he scored 29. Therefore, overall, 63 goals from 250 games (approximately 1 goal every 4 games) BUT clearly his 2022-23 season return was a massive outlier in his career.
Interesting, too, that @deleriad points out since 2016 no Championship Golden Boot winner has stayed at his Championship club the next season unless that team had been promoted! I suppose it makes sense. If that player scored the most goals in the Championship, whereas a Manchester City or a Newcastle might not be interested, clubs lower down the Premier League who want to secure their position the next season (maybe a Forest or a Palace) might very well take a punt on that Golden Boot winner getting them some goals.
@Selwynoz mentions above that "at 28 years old a 4 year contract at an increased salary is a huge chance for him and his family and I don't begrudge him taking this opportunity." It is interesting that people say that for sportsmen. If it was a lawyer or an accountant or some financial professional the words "fat cat" would no doubt be used yet I guess the professional would also have a family to look after. None of the top City Firms (Golden Circle, Magic Circle or whatever firms of solicitors carrying out the most lucrative commercial and company work: firms like Allen & Overy, Linklaters, Clifford Turner etc) paid their equity partners - the people who have invested in the firm, own it and employ the people who work in it as well as taking the financial risk if their firms fail - more than £2.74M in the last year, 2022. Only 4 of those firms paid more than £2M. Those top firms are competing with other firms at the top of the legal and financial centre that London represents in Europe and the world.
That £2M represents £38,461 a week. Less than half the pay of Boro's goalkeeper last season! Salary Sport reports Boro's player wages for last season as including Steffen on £80K a week (no doubt much paid by Man City) but other players were highly paid including Akpom, who may have been offered more in an attempt to keep him, on £27K a week, Jonny Howson £20K and Paddy McNair £19K a week. On those rates, no moderately succcessful Boro player need ever be worried about working again for the rest of his life if he has proper financial guidance and advice - unless he has addictions or other lifestyle issues but they could wreck the life of anyone whatever money they had. Howson is 35 years old and has had a 17 year senior career at Leeds United and Norwich and now at Boro which he joined in 2017. He'll be fine to pay his Sky subscription for many years to come and the same will be the case for Akpom following his Boro and now his Ajax contracts.
Remember that Boro is a Championship club trying to stay within the bounds of financial good sense and FFP. Boro is not the likes of a Golden Circle, Magic Circle or whatever club but a second tier club. Boro supporters must look up at the wealth of such Premier League giants as Crystal Palace and Brentford and weep. To our Roseberry Topping those clubs represent the Alps. And that is without even considering the REALLY wealthy clubs, City, ManU, Newcastle, Arsenal etc. who represent the Andes and the Himalayas The Boro players are not the likes of Messi, Haaland, Kane etc - amongst the very top performers on the European and world stage, let alone the domestic stage. How can the club afford to stay afloat? If he was on £27K a week, what was Boro prepared to offer Akpom to rebuff offers from Ajax etc? £30K or £35K a week? In light of the figures for the goals he has scored throughout his career, and the fact that a repeat of those goals was far from "nailed-on" this season, it makes financial sense to have accepted £12M now (plus add-ons) for Akpom with only 12 months of his contract to run.
Football really is a mad sport, isn't it?
So, this is a match which is a lot more important than it ought to be. An indifferent start to the season, the return of Warnock managing the team who knocked us out of our groove last season. Playing the only team in the league to have had nearly as bad a start as us.
Lose or draw and a problem starts looking like a crisis.
I do get the impression that the fanbase (not to mention all the football pundits) haven't really adjusted to how much of an overhaul Carrick is having to deal with. Any sort of history shows that this kind of thing can take a good 2-3 months to settle in. Unfortunately for us, that takes us into what has become, these days, Gibson's sacking window.
Every season since relegation, we have overhauled 2/3 of the team, and every season it has been a mistake. This time we had no choice. 5 first team loanees have gone along with Chuba. They have been, largely replaced with young, unproven players. Probably the right thing to do, but it's going to be painful.
The team. I'm going to keep on saying that I think our players are best suited to 4-3-3 so I would choose
Dieng
McNair - Fry - Lenihan - Engel
Hackney - Howson (if fit) - McGree
Rogers - Forss - Silvera
I think Latte Lath may not be ready to start.
If we have to play 4-2-3-1 then my forward line would be
Rogers - McGree - Silvera
Forss
We all know that a Warnock team will set up to bully the other side so I strongly suspect that Carrick will try to put more height and physicality into the team. It will be a mistake but I expect
Dieng
McNair - Fry - Lenihan - Engel
Hackney - Howson
Forss - Crooks - Silvera
Rogers
I really hope not because I feel we could easily lose 2-0.
Still, in McClaren's first season we lost the first 4 games but it turned out alright in the end.
I would like to test I Jones at right back.
Dieng
Jones - Fry - Lenihan - Engel
Hackney - Howson (if fit)
Rogers - McGree - Silvera
Forss
I, too, think Latte Lath may not be ready to start.
Up the Boro!
If Engels is ready to go then I would stick with McNair for now at right back. He can stay back and form a back three when we're in possession with Engels pushing high up the field on the left.
I don't see us changing shape but there is now an option to play wingbacks again with Jones on the right. a 3-4-3 something like:
--------------Dieng--------------
-------McNair Fry Lenihan------
Jones Hackney Howson Engels
-------Morgan Lath McGree------
McGree would effectively play the same role, coming inside to the no. 10 position when Engels pushes up the left. Morgan would do the same when Jones gets high. Lath could of course be Forss.
@jarkko. Sorry Jarkko I disagree with you regarding Jones. He is not a full back, he is too small and defensively his tackling is questionable; at times he has made some good last ditch tackles but is also prone to giving away free kicks in dangerous positions.
On recent performances he struggles to make the team for me. 😎
I'm afraid that the assessments of our play, all of them, totally ignore the fact of our complete abandonment of the aggressive and ruthless, not to say determined, pursuit of victory, whoever the opposition was, at home and away. These methods were those of our new Manager. The methods we have watched since the run in last season are the methods used by this club for many seasons. Question? Is he delegating his coaching duties to Woodgate, and how did we come to employ someone who has a track record of complete and utter failure at this club, there does seem to be an obsession with old Boys at this club and it can only be from the chairman. Answers on a postcard please.
Jarkko. By small I mean not only height but also physically, he can be too easily brushed off the ball. 😎
Are we expecting any more incomers, do you think? Even if we hang onto Coburn - a big if - I feel we are still striker-light. Surely we will need to spend some of the Chuba money on more striker power? But £6-7 million, if that’s what Steve Gibson can make available, doesn’t buy you the kind of quality we would need to replace Chuba’s goals, and he may already have spent a large chunk on Engel and Latte Lath, so it might be much less than that. I’ve always been a great believer that many a good Championship striker starts off in League 1, but we don’t seem to have gone down that route for many years. Alternatively, perhaps we might get in a loanee who is surplus to requirements at a Premiership club - but it would be unrealistic to expect someone like that to get us 20 goals - think Flo Balogun, or worse, Aaron Connelly! I’m actually a bit surprised Carrick hasn’t made use of his obvious Man United connections to find us a decent loanee there.
And what about other positions? Do any of you think we still need to strengthen elsewhere? Can we afford to? Can we afford NOT to?
Football has gone beyond mad in the eyes of Mrs Werder and indeed it makes her quite mad when she hears the astronomical fees paid for and to footballers - she's even quite serious that it should be stopped as it's completely unjustifiable in a world where money is increasingly a problem for the majority. For her, football is no longer a sport in the sense of what sport is supposed to be about where success only belongs to the teams that spend the most money.
I can't really argue against that view as football appears to no longer exist in the real world that we see around us - as like you said the rest of business is forced to operate. Furthermore, despite various financial fair play formulas, it's primarily all built on debt and the servicing of it depends on spending more than others to avoid the dreaded relegation from the land of magic money trees.
Though can't see anything ever changing as there's no will out there to do anything radical - the arrival of various countries sovereign wealth funds has only raised the entry bar for the rest. Can't see MFC ever being a player in the current state of the football business model - we're just looking for another fleeting 15 minutes of fame and then hoping to avoid the drastic fallout from getting there.
So football is more a gambling business than a sport but following our club is what we grew up with so everyone is just clinging to the hope that one day their club will make it - like being a contestant on a reality show where the public are entertained by seeing if the underdog can avoid inevitable failure against the odds.
Anyway, it's a Yes from me - unsurprisingly it's a No from Mrs Werder!
Next contestant please...
let’s hope he’s Fintastic !
Let's hope so even though he's Danish. I can't think of too many other Danes. Martin Braithwaite was a quality player but didn't fit with the then management and decided that he wanted out. Other than Mikkel Beck, are there many others.
UTB
Don't forget the two Schmeichels, the two Laudrups, Christian Eriksen & Pierre Højberg. 😉
I met Martin Braithwaite every Sunday morning when his son played football at Yarm when one of my grandsons was playing on the next pitch.
We always talked football and I thought he was a great guy and really disappointed that he left under a cloud
OFB
One point regarding this slush of money being hurled around from club to club is to remember it’s not all cash paid immediately. So whilst we may have committed funds we probably have expended very little overall and if budgets are reasonably creative then I’m sure we can get another striker in.
OFB
I don’t have any postcards I’m afraid so I have to use this blooming phone with a tiny keyboard operated by fat pudgy fingers !
I think that the Boro coaches have some chemistry between them.
They were respected professional and international players in their own right and all bring something to the party.
To be honest I’d rather see them on the touch line and training ground than the previous coaching teams we have had all been approaching advanced old age and beer guts to match.
When signing players it’s not just about the money players want to win something. They like good training facilities, enthusiastic supporters, good teamates and above all a coaching team they can look up to and respect for their imput and knowledge of the game.
Me? Me?
I think the Boro have that and we’ll be
ok !
OFB
Probably Latte needs stirring up a bit first before making an impact.
He may make an espresso on us all amd that will be sugar on the top and we’ll be like the cat that got the cream!
Its frothy man!
OFB
Some good points and many people forget McClaren made an inauspicious start to his Boro career which turned out all right in the end making him our most successful manager.
I am going to the game on Saturday so I hope that doesn’t put a dampener on their performance!
OFB
Great Post you’re really on a roll with these now well done!
I don’t begrudge Akpom going as well
OFB
The absence of some of our best players may explain the downturn in form last season and at the start of this. A fully fit Howson, Giles and Akpom were at the heart of everything that we did.
I do also think that many people on here tend to see everything in black and white. Every game is nuanced. In the first leg against Coventry, Akpom had a headed chance that he would have scored 8 times out of ten. Had he scored it we would have gone into the home leg 1-0 up and who knows what would have happened. We should also recognise that the Gyokeres/Hamer combination caused us huge problems on the counter-attack which may have been made worse or better by a more frenzied attacking stance.
As for this season, I'll be happy if we can get close to 1.5 points per game over the first 10-15 games as we bed in all the new players. The profile of players being bought feels good for the long term. Whether that means that this is a transitional season remains to be seen.
UTB