Middlesbrough va faire une offre pour Boupendza (Hatayspor) à hauteur de 9,5 millions d'euros. #Boro #MFC #PremierLeague #Hatayspor
It's probably as good as a done deal - I can almost hear the start of the Riverside chanting his name as he sadly misses another golden opportunity - Boooooo......
Though I hope it's not Neil Bausor who's frantically editing Wikipedia pages so he can finally come home!
RR, apparently Celtic wanted him but now Watford sniffing.
Watford have no chance if Marton Hall Drive under 17's are in for him!
Celtic's early demise from the Champions League has severely dented their finances for this season. That two legged defeat to Midtjylland has very probably handed the title to Rangers and with it very probably consigned themselves to at least four or five years playing catch up to their Glasgow rivals; and we think SG can screw up badly!
On a more serious note how many strikers do Watford want? At this rate they will be offering us Fletcher back on loan which I suspect may have already happened judging by NW's recent comments which perhaps wasn't as cryptic as some might think?
@redcarred Agree Celtic have certainly screwed up this season. Such a shame for a massive club.
All credit to Rangers for appointing Steven Gerrard. Manager and club working together in harmony.
Let's hope that Middlesbrough this season do the same.
Elsewhere, West Bromwich Albion have signed winger Adam Reach on a three-year contract.
The 28-year-old was released by Sheffield Wednesday at the end of last season, having scored 24 goals in 231 appearances for the Yorkshire club.
Adam is a versatile player but especially good on the left side. I think he would have fitted well to us. I still remember seeing his debut at Riverside all those years ago as we were visiting Teesside one spring time. I liked him.
Up the Boro!
Somehow I do not think he is the striker we are after. Hence I am in a shock. Not excited.
Up the Boro!
Could this be what you are looking for?
Middlesbrough va faire une offre pour Boupendza (Hatayspor) à hauteur de 9,5 millions d'euros. #Boro #MFC #PremierLeague #Hatayspor
More promising, I think. Perhaps this is the left winger that Neil Warnock promised to be immenient after the Rotherham match.
But not yet the striker that will "shock" us, the fans me thinks.
Up the Boro!
There appear to be some mixed views about Sory Kaba, he seems to be a bit of a Marmite player and there is a reason why he is available.
He certainly appears to be a decent Striker on paper but I would be worried about his general attitude having seemingly thrown his toys out of the Pram with Bo Henriksen the new Midtjylland Manager. Allegedly he stormed out of a training session and has been told that he won’t play again unless his attitude dramatically improves.
Clearly there are two sides to every story but "exercise caution" comes to mind. The last thing we want is yet another Striker with baggage.
Haven’t we had enough strikers who looked good on paper but turned out to have a bad attitude - Mido, Viduka, Yakubu, Boksic, even Ravanelli? All started with good intentions, but all wanting that final pay day! Mercenaries the lot of them! When was the last time Boro had great strikers? Maybe Brian Clough and Alan Peacock because they were home grown. Give Josh Coburn an extended run in my opinion. He’ll make mistakes but young enough to learn from them.
We are short of defenders for the left side as Bola is still recovering from his hernia operation. And Fry is better on the right side.
I know Nathan Wood played "only" 209 minutes during the preseason friendlies and he is right footed. But Wood is known to be a pacey player and has previously played as a left-midfielder as a result of this. He has recorded a 100m time of 13.07 seconds when he was aged 13 - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nathan_Wood_(footballer).
So why do we not try Wood on the left of defense now? Either as a centre back or full back on left.
Also, Jack Robinson played 156 minutes during the pre-season. He is a natural left back.
Up the Boro!
Bernie Slaven, perhaps? A loyal Boro player and adopted Teessider now. Up the Boro!
In some (many?) cases the problem has not been the quality or attitude of the forward but the way we've used them.
I can faintly hear the steam coming Redcar Red's ears as I mention the name Patrick Bamford.
Kieran Scott Proposed Director of Football for MFC interview at Norwich about his role at the club.
Recruitment is always a crucial element in the operation of a football club, but the individuals who work in the department often don’t get the recognition they deserve.
Under the current regime at Norwich City, it’s an area which has become particularly important Kieran Scott, who spoke about his role in the current set-up, the recruitment operation and the process behind signing players who have gone on to be key members of the first-team squad.
Thanks for chatting to us, Kieran. Could you talk to us about how you got the job here at Norwich City and what your role entails?
I started scouting about 12 years ago. I’ve had roles at AFC Bournemouth, Southampton, Burnley and Wolves previously, and my job at Wolves was where I first met Stuart. He left to join Huddersfield Town and I then re-joined Burnley to work under Frank McParland who was the Sporting Director there at the time.
Then obviously Stuart came to Norwich and approached me to come in as Head of Domestic Scouting at the time. That’s then evolved, a few months later, into my current role as Head of Recruitment and overseeing the whole department.
My role is aimed at putting a strategy in place for the first-team scouting department and also making sure the Academy recruitment is working as well and implementing that strategy. Once the strategy is in place, I make sure it’s working, support the scouts in their roles and on a monthly basis, we will then have a meeting when we go through all the players we’ve looked at. My role eventually leads to speaking to Stuart and Daniel where we then go through the players and they then makes the decision on whether we are signing those players.
Talk us through the process of the Recruitment department identifying a player and what leads to you recommending that player to Stuart and Daniel…
An example I can use of a more recent player is Emi [Buendia, pictured]. He was at Cultural Leonesa [in the Spanish second tier] and he was first flagged by our recruitment analysts that we have in the department as a high performing data player in that league, and he was only 20 years old at the time. He was brought to my attention and I felt strongly about him very quickly. I spoke to Stuart about him and put him on his radar and he was a player that we all liked. We went out to see the player and Stuart managed to do the deal very quickly. Emi would have been seen at least 12 times live and on video before we pushed the button on him. He captured the imagination of everybody.
Which other players from this season’s squad have you played a role in bringing to the Club?
As Head of Recruitment, you get a lot of information from Daniel. He’s quite vocal when he speaks about players he wants to bring in. One of them was Moritz Leitner - he introduced Moritz to us, we watched him and we all backed each other on it. We all work very well together to get to the end-game.
The recruitment department started its impact last January with the signings of Onel Hernandez and Kenny McLean. They were both players scouted heavily within the recruitment team, which was then backed by the first-team staff. That’s usually how it collates together.
But in terms of this summer Tim [Krul], Teemu [Pukki, pictured], Ben [Marshall] and Emi [Buendia] have all been heavily scouted and put forward by us. Stuart and Daniel will go away and watch the players in-depth as well and we will then meet afterwards to discuss it further to see whether the player fits and whether it works financially. It’s a collective effort.
We had quite an awkward situation with Teemu. Stuart and I went to watch him play for Brondby and we were sat on the runway ready to board the plane, but the engine failed so we had to go back through security and back home. He scored two that night but luckily we are thorough with our jobs, went back a few weeks later and he scored another two!
Which other areas of the Club do you work closely with?
We are building a strong relationship with the Academy. The success of Max [Aarons, pictured], Jamal [Lewis], Todd [Cantwell, pictured], Ben [Godfrey], and James [Maddison] before, there are good players coming through and we need to keep that going. We all know that the prices in football are driving upwards, so we need to produce our own for us to be able to afford to have good players like James. Working with the Academy, we work really hard to identify those players and then do our best to recruit, in what is very difficult market.
Finally, the project here is very much about making Norwich City “one club” and bringing the Academy and First-Team a lot closer together. How much are you enjoying being a part of it?
It’s brilliant. It’s something I’ve had a taste of at Wolves, in fairness. There was a similar structure in place there so it’s something I’ve worked under previously. I totally understand it as well. For departments and the Club to work as a whole, everyone has to be on the same page. You can’t have different departments doing different things and then expect it to work at the end. I thoroughly enjoy it here.
OFB
@original-fat-bob is that his interview from 2018, I only ask as he refers to Pukki signing this summer and he joined Norwich in 2018.
Come on BORO.
Me too to be honest, OFB. No doubt the club would accuse of us of hindsight but many of us could see that Bamford's clever movement and composure were the hallmarks of a good centre forward so long as you play to his strengths.
I do wonder what the state of play would be today if the decision makers had recognised that at the time but the same can be said for the way Lee Tomlin, who had an excellent understanding with Bamford, was dumped.
@andy-
We all saw how dynamic Bamford was as a mainline striker during his first spell with us, and how badly he was treated by a succession of managers including Pardew, Dyche, Monk, and Pulis. I remember writing on here that though he was played by Monk as a No 10, or wide on the right, he was still our best player, but he was capable of so much more played in his best position. You did not have to be a genius of Bielsa proportions to see what the Leeds' manager saw immediately; that he was an outstanding leader of his line. Most of us on here knew that and were repeating it ad nauseum, but no one at the club seemed to have any sense of it up to and including his giveaway price to a promotion rival. Unbelievable, Geoff.
The Guardian* think we might have a chance of promotion.
https://www.theguardian.com/football/2021/aug/04/championship-2021-22-season-preview?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other
*other newspapers are available
Middlesbrough are still interested in a summer move for Watford striker Andre Gray.
The vastly experienced front man emerged as a target in the north east of the country back in early July, and are continuing to consider putting forward an offer.
Gray is currently training with Watford’s U23s as he continues to get back up to speed after his summer break – which was extended as a result of his inclusion in Jamaica’s Gold Cup squad.
Gray is entering the final 12 months of his contract with The Hornets, any move is likely to be a loan, in which Watford will be pushing for the teams in pursuit to cover a significant percentage of his wages.
The former Burnley man netted just five times in 30 appearances last season, although, the majority of games he played came from the bench.
Gray still has plenty to offer. He has blistering pace and the attacking intelligence to time his runs and break opposing lines in the process.
He has proved in the past to be a clinical finisher, but over the last couple of seasons, he has not been able to provide this sort of service as consistently.
Gray needs to settle down at a club where he is offered regular game time. Middlesbrough would be a good club for him to go to, as he tends to work well with a physical striker who can provide for him – something that Uche Ikpeazu would certainly bring
OFB
Blackburn Rovers and Middlesbrough race to sign Aberdeen star Hedges
Blackburn Rovers and Middlesbrough are chasing Aberdeen attacker Ryan Hedges,
The Championship duo are fighting it out to sign the forward on a permanent deal.
The 26-year-old has just 12 months left to run on his Dons contract.
He has scored 13 times and provided 12 assists in 66 games across all competitions for Aberdeen.
However, the Wales international missed the opening game of the Scottish Premiership season at the weekend with an injury.
OFB
According to Football League World, Boro have been assured that Boupendza would not snub a move to the Championship if the financial package was right, giving Warnock hope of snatching a high-profile capture.
Left winger Aaron Boupendza, who is a Gabon international, began his career with Bordeaux but was forced out on loan on a number of occasions. He linked up with Pau, Gazelec Ajaccio, Tours and Feiense.
However, in 2020, he joined Hatayspor on a permanent deal and enjoyed a really prolific 2020/21 in the Super Lig. In 36 league appearances, the forward struck 22 goals as they finished sixth.
Up the Boro!
Aaron Boupendza sounds as good as Assombalonga was before signing for the Boro 🤣. UTB!
So it's finally official: Martin Payero has signed a three-year deal and will wear the Number 10 shirt!
No. 10 is Akpom's number so I'm guessing that an imminent deal has been agreed for Akpom to move out. If not it's a heck of a hint!
Right folks, let’s give Payero a few matches (maybe half a season) before you write him off.
Come on BORO.
Right folks, let’s give Payero a few matches (maybe half a season) before you write him off.
Come on BORO.
I gave Carlos de Pena 45 minutes on a Tuesday night and wasn't wrong unfortunately, he was just not cut out for this type of Football. Payero does seem a little more robust and in theory should be a better fit for the rigours of the Championship. We should know by the end of September.
No one on here has written Payero off, and I doubt that they will. He looks a good prospect with a progressive attitude and a willingness to get forward. Since we have been crying out for these qualities, and bemoaning a lack of creativity for most of the past decade there will be a great deal of support for this young man. Boro fans love quality and it is the fact that we have deprived of it and that successive managers have set our sights so low over the past few seasons that has caused so much frustration and resentment. From what I have seen he seems like an exciting prospect, though perhaps a little one-footed. It will be understandable if he takes a little time to settle, and he may be dismayed by the realities of Warnock-ball. But I think the good judges who contribute to this blog will not be short of patience with Payero and will universally wish him well.
Lionel Messi is leaving Barcelona even after the player and club agreed to a 50% cut in his wages, it still can’t get past Spanish Liga regulations, Leo is on a flight to Spain now.
Come on BORO.
Lionel Messi is leaving Barcelona even after the player and club agreed to a 50% cut in his wages, it still can’t get past Spanish Liga regulations, Leo is on a flight to Spain now.
Come on BORO.
Perhaps this is the player that was talked about that will shock Boro supporters...