Five-year contract for Lankshear. That's according to Fabrizio Romano.
Teesside Live were told that it's £8m initially, with a potantial for £12m in performance-related add-ons. Spurs have included a sell-on fee, as is fairly standard, and, having initially tried to insert a buy-back clause, the two clubs have instead agreed on a matching rights on future bids clause.
Up the Boro!
Re: Harley Hunt
Teesside Live are reporting: "Posting on his Instagram, the defender confirmed that he has had to undergo surgery, describing himself as ‘gutted’. It’s understood he’s suffered a hamstring injury and faces three to four months on the sidelines.
"It comes just months after the 18-year-old returned from a year-long absence. He made his long-awaited return to action in March, and even made the bench for the first leg of Boro's play-off semi-final."
This explains why he was not in Glasgow for the Celtic match. Up the Boro!
‘Are we happy with Lankshear? ‘
Well, probably. He’s been touted around for a while as an effective marksman and has his Tottenham pedigree. He’s sought after, scored 12 goals for relegated Oxford last season, and has Champo experience. So, potentially, he looks a good signing, and could well give us much stronger options up front if we have a choice of him, Tommy, Strelec and Joseph. I can see him playing alongside any of those three. However, I’m not sure he’s worth what we’re apparently paying for him. It seems a hefty amount that must surely limit what else we can do in the market, which might be a concern given how many other spaces we have yet to fill.
Looking at the number of players who have left plus other players Boro would like to move on, then Boro need to recruit a lot of players.
Inevitably the eventual squad of first team players will resemble a new team.
This has got to be a monumental challenge in welding them all together to produce a squad of players capable of challenging for a top 6 finish. Unfortunately, not all players signed will be a hit which makes it more difficult. I hope supporters will be patient.
So let’s hope Boro can secure a blend of players , some young with potential but also some tried and tested at Championship level.
One of my biggest wishes is to have a couple of decent wingers capable of beating the full back and crossing the ball. Can Sermiento be one of them ? I’d love to think so but I have my doubts based on performances so far.
This style of play would allow a more varied way of playing rather than trying to always go through the middle and be more exciting for the fans.
Still early days, so I need to be patient and keep my fingers crossed that Boro can attract the right players at the right price.
ps I’m pleased at the reported signing from Spurs but not so sure about the price.
philip of Huddersfield 👍🤔👍
The Will Lankshear deal sounds a bit inflated to me based on him scoring 11 goals last season - so Boro are paying for potential and hoping he is the real deal.
Coburn scored 10 goals and was sold for £5m and it’s also less than Conway scored and many thought his finishing was the weakest part of his game.
That’s not to say Lankshear is not a decent player but the price tag seems to suggest he’s expected to be a much better player in the future - btw BBC reporting that other teams are also interested and Lankshear has not yet agreed personal terms.
@werdermouth Yes, that was what BBC wrote about personal terms.
But the Echo wrote: "Lankshear is already understood to have agreed the personal terms of the move, which will see him make a permanent switch to the Riverside."
Up the Boro!
He is considered to be one of the best young strikers available. He scores 1 in 2 goals/shots on target. He is big and young, has survived 50 games in the Championship and Tottenham have done everything that they can to make sure that they can get him back if he turns into the next Harry Kane.
The initial fee at a reported 8 million is not unrealistic for a genuine goal-scorer. The final fee is high but I'm guessing that he will have to hit some solid targets for us to pay it all.
For me its a statement that Steve Gibson sees this squad and Kim Hellberg as his best and possibly final chance to deliver premier league football for all the Boro supporters.
You have to admire what he has done for the club and I'm guessing that there will be two or three more serious signings plus some squad support.
UTB
re Will Lankshear
... also not forgetting that his 12 goals last term were scored for a struggling team
The thing that has always struck me most about Lankshear is not so much his goals but that he is a proper centre-forward, an imposing physical presence, a real handful for defenders, well capable of holding the ball up, bringing others into play and giving as good as he gets. it's precisely what we lacked most last season. He will score goals , but I also hope that he can take the weight off Strelec and bring the best out of him.
The other major factor is that for the first time since Scott was appointed we look as though we might be starting the season with four useful mainline strikers- Lankshear, Joseph, Conway and Strelec. We will need these numbers in a stressful competitive season, because injuries always take their toll, particularly of strikers, and we have always seriously underestimated our requirements in this department.
I have despaired in the past when Scott has said that the likes of Greenwood and even Silvera could always be considered as back-ups if our strikers were injured (which they always have been). We now have what Coventry. Ipswich and Southampton all had last season, the distinguishing factor that made them our most likely promotion rivals , and the one that eventually got two of them over the line. And, of course, it was Hull's physical striker, and the fact that ours, Conway, was injured that made all the difference in the play-off final
Today the FA have charged Eckert with 3 breaches of rule E3.1 over Spygate.
Come on BORO.
Today the FA have charged Eckert with 3 breaches of rule E3.1 over Spygate.
Come on BORO.
Oh dear how sad nevermind
@lenmasterman Glad you are impressed with our new striker.
I am just thinking about our attackers under Hellberg and our attcking style to play.
Conway, Strelec/Lankshear, Whittaker
And then think about McGree and Kyle Joseph, for example. I am over the moon.
Up the Boro!
Some more transfer rumours from my source: USA midfielder Sebastian Berhalter is at Rockcliffe and Burgzorg is on his way out 🤔.
Come on BORO.
@exmil Belhalter is valued at € 8 million by Fransfermarkt. The player is 25 years old and has his Vancouver Whitecaps contract expring on 31/12/2026. He is a central midfielder.
I do not know anything else about the American. Unfortunately.
Re: Burgzorg
We need to off-load a few attacking players like Hamilton, for example. So Burgzorg's exit won't be a surprise.
Up the Boro!
@exmil. Spot on Exmil. EG now confirming that Boro are close to concluding a deal. 😎
According to the Teesside Live the deal is said to be worth $1.5m, other sources have suggested $800k plus add ONS.@exmil Belhalter is valued at € 8 million by Fransfermarkt. The player is 25 years old and has his Vancouver Whitecaps contract expring on 31/12/2026. He is a central midfielder.
I do not know anything else about the American. Unfortunately.
Re: Burgzorg
We need to off-load a few attacking players like Hamilton, for example. So Burgzorg's exit won't be a surprise.
Up the Boro!
Come on BORO.
More info on Berhalter:
- He came through the academy at Columbus Crew, making his breakthrough alongside Aidan Morris
- Born in London, he is the son of former Crystal Palace defender Gregg Berhalter
- He joined Vancouver Whitecaps in 2022 and in 167 appearances has 20 goals and 26 assists
- He's considered a more attack-minded midfielder, who can play a forward pass, hit a good long-range effort, and is said to good on set pieces
- Capped 18 times by the USA, including five appearances at this summer's World Cup, where he caught the eye
- He got a goal and an assist in the loss to Turkey in their final grouo stage match (go and watch his goal if you've not seen it yet!
- He was due to be out of contract at Vancouver in five months and, rather than lose him on a free, they've decided to sell now, with the deal agreed said to be worth roughly $1.5m in total.
Wow. That’s two big captures and it must be tempting for Arfsten to join the American colony at Boro. Assuming Berhalter goes through, I have to take my hat off to Kieran Scott and the team for pulling off the two latest transfers. Suddenly things are looking much better.
utb
Excellent post on Lankshear Len.
Hoping all of you are as well as can be. Will be back with more insights soon.
One of my grandsons, who is a mad Bolton fan, tells me Wanderers are interested in signing Burgzorg. I don’t really see him as an answer to any of our goal-scoring difficulties, and I can’t see him being used much other than as a substitute, as we’ve done till now, so I hope this move or another one comes about.
Here is the goal Berhalter scored against Turkey in the World Cup. I think he assisted the first one, too.Wow. That’s two big captures and it must be tempting for Arfsten to join the American colony at Boro. Assuming Berhalter goes through, I have to take my hat off to Kieran Scott and the team for pulling off the two latest transfers. Suddenly things are looking much better.
utb
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XnDs5rgXgFM
Up the Boro!
I have been a Boro supporter since about 1952, when I was eight years old. I say “about” because what I used to think was an absolute fact, I now understand may actually be more like a close approximation of the facts.
I have only ever been a Boro supporter, but I have followed England and latterly the Vancouver Whitecaps.
The Whitecaps are not my local team, but they are the closest MLS football team (soccer team over on this side of the pond). I’ve never been to one of their games, but when they play, the sports reporter on the local TV station gives a precis of the game and they show a few highlights.
Sebastian Berhalter has been a mainstay of the team for quite a while now, and it was reported a day or so ago that rumours were in the mill that he was to be sold. Initially, I felt quite sad about that, because he will be sorely missed, and don’t we all feel somewhat sad when one of the cogs in a team is sold? The sadness was short-lived when I read on here that he was in talks with Middlesbrough. I think he will be a good addition if it goes through.
The following is from Global News, BC.
He has 6 goals and 7 assists in 14 matches this year and is said to have “fire in his belly”, to be talented, can do it all, whip balls into the box and “finishes with a rocket shot”.
… and all at a reasonable price. (my words).
Some really promising developments. I'd like to see Browne come back since he offers cover for so many positions in addition to his resilience and experience. It's never a bad thing to have a battle- hardened warrior available in the middle of the park.
@johnny-canuck Great story there. Enjoyed it.
Further about Sebastian Berhalter. His father has played for Crystal Palace and is a well known coach. The senior is a former head coach of the USA National team, for examle.
Interestingly, his first stint as a h3ad coach was at Hammarby - the same team Boro signed Kim Hellberg from.
Following a season as Los Angeles Galaxy's assistant coach, Berhalter was named head coach for Swedish club Hammarby on December 12, 2011. Berhalter became the first American-born manager to manage a professional team in Europe. In his first year, Hammarby improved seven positions in the standing, narrowly missing out on promotion. Berhalter was fired on July 24, 2013, for a "lack of attacking play". Hammarby were in fifth place at the time of the sacking.
Up the Boro!
@lenmasterman. Agree wholeheartedly about Browne. His versatility and experience could make all the difference; rumours are that he is not high on the MFC recruitment list. 😎
I agree with your comments about Browne, but maybe it's his wage demands that are the stumbling block. I don't think it would have been his performance.
I agree that we should try to get Browne back but he is currently in the US with the Sunderland squad who are playing three friendlies there against Liverpool, Leeds and Wrexham, so he is still under contract at the SOL so would probably have to be a loan again if he was to return to the Riverside, and most loans are not completed until much later in the window. Interestingly, the Wrexham fixture is kicking off on 2 August in the evening UK time so Wrexham won't be back in the UK until Monday morning with a game at Middlesbrough on the Friday.