There’s nowt good about losing Hackney, inevitable though it was. I am, however, pleased that he’s gone to a solid and decent club in Everton, with a likeable and able manager in David Moyes. I hope he does well for them.
sorry to see Hackney go. Hope that the money will be invested wisely. Three games moved for TV coverage, including league cup game v Wrexham on the Friday night and all other games up until FA Cup third round to be named by the end of the month.
Also looking at the pictures of the Boro players as they return to training, both Conway and McGree participating, and Conway without the boot he was seen earlier wearing to protect his ankle, so hopefully both may be ready to start the season.
Expansive article from the NE on why we are signing Kyle Joseph
But are we? This report on Hull's sale of two players to stave off the threat of a points deduction appeared on the Beeb site yesterday:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/c5yz5dprjq0o
and it contains the following sentence:
Hull were expected to sell Kyle Joseph to Middlesbrough for £5m to clear the deficit, but a snag between the clubs meant it could not be completed on time.
*confused*
@stircrazy Did not pass his medical, I believe. He is still not recovered from an ankle op, following injury during a semi game.
@stircrazy Did not pass his medical, I believe. He is still not recovered from an ankle op, following injury during a semi game.
Ah, OK. Thanks, Pedro.
Talk in the Northern Echo about Myles Peart -Harris as being a likely signing. A free agent after his release by relegated Oxford. Pacy winger apparently, 3 goals in 19 games at Oxford. Was on loan at Swansea in the previous season with similar output. I think the only positives are he is free and only 23.
@mw-in-darwin We appear to be signing players that have not been good enough at EPL clubs and then being released.
Three for the Academy, we seem to do that on a regular basis, but with no success over the last few seasons. Now Peart-Harris and at 23 he has not proven to be even EFL standard.
@pedro. Quote from the EG: “He's 23 and has struggled for consistency in his career so far.” 🤔
Should fit in well with some of the others recruited! 😎
Re: Myles Peart-Harris
I do not know much about him, but at least he has played in the Championship for both Swansea and Oxford. He is young and versatile - been playing at number 4 and 8, both wings and as a number 10.
Looks like a signing like Castledine - so I hope both players can play a part this season. The same goes for Jeremy Sarmiento, too. I hope one or two of the three really clicks and have a good season for us.
Up the Boro!
BTW, the training kit was shown now when the players were back for training. As well as when Myles was introdused.
Does anyone know when the new kit will be shown? It must be soon with the first match played at Celtic in a fortnight.
Up the Boro!
MFC’s new main sponsor is Midnite.
I can hear the comments already, we could have played until midnight and still not scored. 😂😎
EG/MFC reporting Dale Fry has joined Birmingham City! 😖😎
@k-p-in-spain I think I’m more disappointed in his leaving than the departure of HH, even though both are Teessiders.
He’s never given less than 100% for the team, but being dogged by injury has obviously affected his career. I wish him well at Birmingham.
Well so far the team/squad is looking thinner and weaker following the loss of Hackney, Fry, Targett and Browne and little sign, so far, of equivalent quality replacements.
We are either going to see a lot of activity in the coming weeks or KH is going to have an even bigger job on his hands. 😎
@martin-bellamy. I agree wholeheartedly. HH was always going to happen but I always felt that , even with his injury record, MFC could have found an acceptable compromise.
What’s the betting he manages 40 games for Brum.😎
I wonder who’ll take over as captain for the season. I’d be tempted to give the armband to Morris - he seems very vocal when the team gather together on the pitch.
Reports that FRY has signed for Birmingham on a 3 year deal.
I would have preferred to keep him. Presumably Boro will be looking for a replacement?
philip of Huddersfield 🤔🤔
The list as it stands includes
Alfie Jones (We didn't have him for the second half of the season so he is almost like a direct replacement)
Luke Ayling
George Edmundson
Adilson Malanda
On top of that we have some U-21 players (Wilson, McCormick, Hunt) who have played for the first team and may be ready to step up.
Maybe one solid professional would top up the squad.
UTB
Yes, it was a pity to see Dael Fry leaving. He was Boro through and through.
We have very few academy players in the FIRST team squad now. Only McCabe and Brynn. I think our academy should produce more. So it was sad to see both Dael and Hayden leaving the club.
Let's hope we will see some new faces REGULARLY from the academy in the first team squad soon. Up the Boro!
Probably in the upcoming season only Sol Brynn will be the only Academy graduate to get game time on a regular basis and his place maybe in doubt. I had a look at the squads of the teams that made the play offs to see how many graduates they had from their academy in their squads who played a significant number of games. Four of them had 1 each and Ipswich had none, they didn't have any academy graduates with a squad number. We had three who played regularly and three others with squad numbers. Speaking of Academy graduates I see that Mcaulay Longstaff, who many thought we should sign a couple of seasons ago has left Millwall to join Salford City on a permanent deal.
I’m bitterly disappointed that we’ve let Dael Fry go. I know he’s had his injury issues, but when he was fit he was absolutely one of our most reliable defenders. I can’t believe the club didn’t sort out his contract a long time since. Now we’ve let him go on a free. Yet another high quality replacement needed. Very poor management, in my view.
@clive-hurren Personally even though I would have liked to have retained Dael Fry, I think the reality of the economics is that, what he is probably getting with Birmingham, 3 years, a signing on fee and most likely bigger wages, shut the door to any continuation with MFC.
In ten years and over 500 games, he has only featured apparently in around two hundred and fifty matches.
Is there really any member on here, that would honestly have given him a three year contract irrespective of the wages and signing on fee. Not me.
The important thing now is that we need to find a replacement CB who is at least as good as Fry and ideally better; a tall order. 😎
@mw-in-darwin Just to highlight the enormity of the task Hellberg faces, given the thinness of the squad, here is an article from the Gazette about Morris going to Portugal late, and the squad as it is at the moment.
Jarkko, I would not class McCabe as a squad member or McCormick either.
Lots to do from Scott and Co.
@k-p-in-spain Plus move on Edmundson and possibly Borges, although he could be useful cover and is better than McCormick, who supposedly was a CB originally.
@pedro You are right. But I listed McCabe only because he is on the first team list at the Boro web site. As well as on the list provided by Teesside Live (after my comment 😆): https://www.gazettelive.co.uk/sport/football/transfer-news/aidan-morris-absence-explained-middlesbrough-34235884
So we need to get a player or two from the academy to our first team EVERY season. We spend a lot of money on the academy but it must deliver, too.
Up the Boro!
So by my reckoning, we now need 2 keepers, a left back, a centre back, two midfielders - I’m not counting unknown quantity Peart-Harris - at least 1 winger and 2 strikers. Scott and company had better get a move on!
We may need to lower our expectations from a spending point of view the new financial rules squad cost rules (scr) framework mean clubs can only spend 85 % of revenue on manager/ players wages/agent fee if I am reading rules correctly.
In 2025 the club had turnover of 32M and a wage/revenue ratio of 97% !!
This makes the money from sales and add ons etc so important
@jarkko Thank you for adding the squad link. ☹️
I also agree, considering what the Academy costs, we need to see a better return.
@paulinboro I know it is early days, but given our form in the last 15 games or so and the current squad, mid table will be the pick for the COT’s table at best.