Deleriad,
As you know I have two small yappy Jack Russell Terriers but Barney at 16.5 years old has hung up his paws and spends most of his time sleeping and working on tactics.
However Lucie at three years old is a brute, long-legged, very fast, with a great engine and stamina. She caught a pheasant in the air a few weeks ago, (It's in the freezer now), she prefers the ball on the ground but can deal with higher balls, see pheasant, and never she never quits so she is available if Mr Wilder runs out of striker options.
She's available without the protracted Djed Spence negotiations too. She's 90% white so any strip can coloured in.
UTB,
John
Deleriad re Jordan Rhodes
“ I can well imagine that Wilder might take a punt on him.”
He is age 32 so will CW be able to take a punt on him given SG’s supposed stance on Dwight Gayle? 😎
Sky sports news reporting DS medical at Spurs this morning.
EG reporting that Neil Bausor is in Portugal watching the team training. Doesn’t sound like that means any new signings are imminent. That being said, it’s a digital world and people can work from anywhere these days. Unless you are a civil servant, in which case you need to be in your office albeit you might not have a desk!
On the Armstrong front, I gather that Saints are short on attackers so unlikely to let him go until such time as they have adequate cover. Might be a long wait as they have identified replacements but not got one to sign up yet. 😎
According to ESPN, Spurs will sign Spence for £12.5m with add-ons of £6.5m of which £4m is related to Spurs performance and a further £2.5m related Djed's future involvement with England.
Hopefully, those add-ons don't involve Spurs winning the league and Spence making over a dozen caps and are achievable 🤨
SC Braga v Boro is live on YouTube or if you have a fire stick.
Come on BORO.
SC Braga v Boro is live on YouTube or if you have a fire stick.
Come on BORO.
I have tried both and even though it is advertised on YouTube, I can’t find it and no joy on the fire stick either, anyone got a link 🤔
Come on BORO.
I see the DS fee will be undisclosed, so we may never know how much we get in the end.
As Spurs were the only interested club, Mr Gibson has probably done as best he could, although you will still hear those saying we should have stuck out for more.
Sporting Clube de Braga finished 4th in the Portuguese Primeira Liga last season and are an enigma in Portuguese football. Going under the nickname of Os Arsenaiistas because of the colour of their shirts being red with white sleeves they were the only side to inflict a league victory over FC Porto last season whom they beat 1-0 and they also defeated Benfica 3-2 at home as well as Glasgow Rangers in the Europa Cup although losing the second leg 1-3 at Ibrox after extra time. They have a habit of reserving their best performances against stronger opposition, but sometimes fail to beat lower placed sides in the Primeira Liga, so it was little surprise to me that they should beat the Boro last night. Nevertheless the scoreline was fairly emphatic, though there’s an old adage that football clubs often learn more from defeats than victories, so there’s no need for Boro fans to panic just yet.
However today I’ll be concentrating on the Open Golf Championship again, my favourite sporting event of the year although keeping an eye on the T20 cricket finals day at Edgbaston as Yorkshire face Lancashire in the Semifinal, and then hopefully a final against Hampshire or Somerset which I’ll probably need to record and watch once the golf has finished.
Looking forward (?) to my first view of Boro's new squad (?) in action against Marseille on Friday. I seem to remember Wilder saying at the end of last season that he wanted to get the new players in early and fitted into the team before the start of the season but am not surprised that this has not been possible. Hopefully the next few days will see several arrivals especially the much needed strikers.
Talking about strikers, I am hoping that I will be able to get to the WBA match on 30 July but the revised train timetables are not yet available. As not all the train companies are going on strike on that day and the kick off is 17:30 I should be able to get to Middlesbrough (but as with the previous Friday's friendly match I will miss my 18:00 hotel meal - "sob").
I have also booked my hotel for the Barnsley Carabao Cup match on 9 August. Since then I have seen that the BBC and Sky show that the match has been switched to the 10th. I have also checked the EFL and Barnsley F C web sites and the both show the 10th! I messaged the Boro to check the date via the "supportersatmfc.co.uk" a few days ago but have not received a reply. It will be annoying if the match date has been changed with Boro supporters being the last to know.
I have also booked my hotel for the Barnsley Carabao Cup match on 9 August. Since then I have seen that the BBC and Sky show that the match has been switched to the 10th. I have also checked the EFL and Barnsley F C web sites and the both show the 10th! I messaged the Boro to check the date via the "supportersatmfc.co.uk" a few days ago but have not received a reply. It will be annoying if the match date has been changed with Boro supporters being the last to know
David, in my calendar and on the MFC fixture list the match is on Wednesday 10 August kickoff 19:45 hrs and has far as can remember it has not been changed.
Come on BORO.
I have checked "mfc.co.uk" again and it still shows the Barnsley match as 9 August. As this seems to be the only place that isn't showing the date has been switched to the 10th and hotel prices normally go up as the date gets closer I have now changed my reservation. (Only £1.50 extra charge due.)
(I haven't been able to find anything special happening in Middlesbrough on 9 August but the cost of a room has gone up from the £57 I was charged for my original reservation made on 4 July to £89 now!)
David, download the official MFC app onto your phone and under fixtures (bottom right) the Barnsley cup match is 10th August and has been for awhile, although I agree if you go online to MFC.co.uk it does say the 9th. I have synced all fixtures onto my calendar and when a fixture gets changed it automatically moves it on my calendar 👍
Come on BORO.
Thanks Exmil. I have looked at the MFC app and will keep checking this instead of the website. I only got a "smart phone" in January and it is way too smart for me! I now only keep it (like I did with my old basic mobile phone) for emergencies as I live/travel alone. I prefer to use my landline and desk top when I can. I have never had nimble fingers so I find it too fiddly even just making calls and can't understand using it for messages which I sometimes receive but then disappear/reappear. I print out my train tickets as I don't think I would be able to find them if downloaded to the phone. Linking the MFC app to a calendar is way beyond my capability.
Yesterday was the most amazing days sport I have ever encountered even though everything didn’t quite go to plan. First I decided to watch the first semifinal of the T20 cricket from Edgbaston where Yorkshire appeared to have become favourites after Jordan Thompson hit 5 sixes in 7 balls but was finally caught in the penultimate over having reached his half century in only 17 balls. Remember he was the match winner in the quarterfinal by conceding only 3 runs in the final over at the Oval against Surrey last week as the once named Phoenix did rise from the ashes to record a win by one run. But back to yesterday and once he was out Yorkshire only managed to score 6 runs from the last 7 balls as Thompson’s exit was the start of losing 3 wickets in those 7 balls. Even so 204 for 7 seemed to be a winning score. However Keaton Jennings (once of Durham and a triple centurion earlier in the week) set about the Yorkshire bowling clobbering 75 from 50 balls as Lancashire Lightning won with 8 balls remaining.
That was enough cricket for me yesterday although in the final Lancashire only needed a boundary from the last ball against Hampshire to win which they failed to do as the Southern County celebrated as the pyrotechnics went off. However the umpire guite correctly signalled a no-ball and after a 5 minute delay that meant that the Red Rose county only now needed 2 runs from a free hit to win, but missed their chance as Hampshire won by one run. To be honest I only saw that this morning on the BBC podcast.
I usually watch the Tour de France to try to revisit at least on television of the summer months I spent with my beloved Enid in her final years, but with too much other sport going on this summer I’d already discarded that event from my plans. However I was delighted this morning to read that Redcar Bears had not only reached the semifinals of Speedway’s Championship knockout competition with a comprehensive away win over Berwick Bandits and will meet Edinburgh Monarchs over two legs for a place in the Final, but beat League leaders Leicester Lions 51-39 last night as I tried to keep up to date from the Bears website this morning.
Anyway it was almost 3 pm yesterday that I was able to watch the penultimate round of the 150th Open Golf Championship from St Andrews which I had recorded and what a turnaround from day two as both Aussie Cameron Smith and American Cameron Young both recorded over-par rounds as Rory McIlroy and Norway’s young starlet Viktor Hovland traded birdies after birdies to share the the joint lead at 16 under par to take a 4 shot lead over the two Camerons going into today’s final round. The atmosphere was as electric as a Ryder Cup event, especially as Rory hadn’t won a Major event since 2012.
Finally exhausted but still awake I decided to watch the Rugby Super League match recorded during the afternoon between Castleford Tigers and Warrington Wolves. The Wolves had recorded the shock of the Magic Weekend by beating 3rd placed Catalans 36-6 at Newcastle’s St James’s Park and were expected to beat Cas, but the Tigers led 27-0 just after the interval but then had centre Cheyse Blair sent off with 20 minutes remaining, but some magnificent defending saw Cas prevail with a 33-22 win to preserve their 5th playoff position.
But the main attraction was definitely the golf in my sporting day as I managed to get to bed just after 1am this morning. More of the same today and I haven’t yet caught up with the Boro or football generally. Plenty of time for that in the next fortnight.
David, download the official MFC app onto your phone and under fixtures (bottom right) the Barnsley cup match is 10th August and has been for awhile, although I agree if you go online to MFC.co.uk it does say the 9th. I have synced all fixtures onto my calendar and when a fixture gets changed it automatically moves it on my calendar 👍
Come on BORO.
Could you give guidance on how to sync the fixtures from the App please, Exmil?
In theory our aim this season is promotion or, the playoffs at the very least. Yet this doesn't feel like the beginning of a season where we're pushing hard for promotion. Social media is a bit of a bubble but there appears to be a lot of toxicity around; a lot of arguing and a lot of falling out. Although Wilder is probably the most ambitious managerial appointment we've made since AK, there doesn't feel as though there's a lot of deep faith in him. There also doesn't appear to be much resilience in the fan base; it feels as though any set-back is enough to cause a partial meltdown.
On paper, our main signings this season seem really good but we still have massive holes in the squad and there's now a bid in for Tav. It goes without saying that you don't sell your best players two weeks before the season starts yet the fanbase is as split over Tav as it is over everything else. There is a distinct possibility that we'll start the match against WBA with Watmore and Coburn up front while scrabbling to replace Tav. Lose that match (WBA ended last season strongly) and I think there'll be ructions.
I did a count. In the last 3 complete windows (Jan 21, Summer 21, Jan 22) we transferred or loaned in 25 players. Of those, just two are still involved with the first team: Crooks and McGree. That really is pathetic and is symptomatic of a deep malaise and systemic failures throughout the club. In that respect, it's really no surprise that the fanbase is so uncertain.
Wilder's teams do tend to be slow starters each season and we have a difficult first 4 games. Unless we really splash the cash for top line strikers before the season starts, I feel that the atmosphere could turn really bad really quickly. It could be that away from social media, fans are more positive but we won't know until the season starts in earnest. A first match at home on a Friday night against WBA may be quite a small turnout and flat atmosphere without a big signing to come and see.
Deleriad. To be fair, I think the club have identified a major target, ie Adam Armstrong. The problem is Saints are short on strikers themselves and until they are able to recruit they won’t release AA on loan. 😎
Deleriad
I expect a big home crowd and it’s worth noting that over 20k seats have been sold to date. The south stand is completely sold out for the season which is quite remarkable considering Boro have not made any marquee signings.
OFB
Totally agree with Deleriad, my view is that at the moment with the players we have got, I think Boro will struggle at the beginning. Seems appropiate with Wilder saying that we need a few more signings asap.
Personally and I'm sure not many people will agree but if the club got a big offer for Tavernier then I would let him go.
Glasgow Ranger's for example have sold some of their best players but seem to replace them with a quality and a better type of player.
We will see what happens in the next two weeks for Boro but I will say we are in a desperate situation to get at least someone who can score goals. Not easy of course. We have spent a lot of money in the past for strikers and most ended up as failures. You know who they were.
So I think there will be a lot of pressure on Steve Gibson and the recruitment team to find that bit of magic that we want as a striker. Am I confident? No. But we hope.
I’ve only ever missed two Open Golf Championships either on television or actually being there in the last 59 years since New Zealander Bob Charles became the first left hander to win it at Lytham St Annes; once being on my first foreign holiday in Austria in 1971, and the other when I was touring Scotland in 1983 when Tom Watson beat Jack Nicklaus by one stroke as my wife and I listened on the car radio on the banks of Loch Ness. My two favourite live visits were in 1972 as Lee Trevino beat Tony Jacklin at Muirfield and at Lytham when Seve Ballesteros won after his tee shot found a nearby car park but still found the 17th green with his second shot as his playing partner Hale Irwin waved his white handkerchief on the green in mock surrender.
This afternoon I’d expected to see another two horse race as in 1983 when Watson beat Nicklaus but Rory McIroy and Viktor Hovland who shared a 4 stroke lead going into the final round, but in the most benignest of conditions when most of the field were shooting rounds in the high 60s Rory and Viktor missed putt after putt as Cameron Smith took advantage with 5 successive birdies on the home stretch. The Aussie putted brilliantly, but a golfer of Rory’s pedigree should never lose after holding a 4 stroke advantage. Yet commentator Paul McGinley stated that Rory did nothing wrong. Maybe from tee to green he played well, but the main object of golf is getting that little white ball into the hole in the fewest number of strokes as possible which is something that Rory failed to do. It reminds me much about the Boro who despite their attacking play, can’t score goals.
Reverting to listening to the Watson v Nicklaus encounter by the banks of Loch Ness, I watched Songs of Praise after the golf had finished, and it was televised from Inverness and reminded me of the happy times I had spent there with my wife. I was once interviewed for a post with the Highland Water Authority and was so disappointed when I received a letter stating that they had appointed someone who could speak Gaelic as well as English. Inverness is the most beautiful city in Scotland, and in my opinion in Britain also of those I’ve visited with such beautiful scenery all around. But Que Sera I moved on.
Boro look like they've missed out on a couple of players that were being touted as strong targets - both to Glasgow. Liverpool's Left centre-back, Ben Davies is set to join Rangers instead after a fee was agreed (initial £3m rising to £4m with add-ons). Also, Australian midfielder, Aaron Mooy, looks to be heading to Celtic to link up with his former international manager, Ange Postecoglou - though at 31, perhaps he was vetoed by Steve Gibson in any case.
So the clock is ticking and Boro are still searching to fill those gaps so I would expect to see some signings very soon if Boro are going to start on the front foot this season - however, better not to panic buy as a few weeks making do is far preferable than another season with buyer's remorse.
Interesting, reading Deleriad's post about the sheer number of transfer failures in recent years but I expect that's also a symptom of changing managers and playing style far too frequently. Warnock brought in wingers and big units up top, which was the antithesis of what Wilder needed - though the current manager does seem quite specific in how he wants the team to attack the opposition so in some ways needing wing-backs reduces the possible forward options that can be targeted.
It goes without saying that accepting an offer for Tav late in the window would be a mistake - sounds like his price starts at £15m so any deal will likely be as protracted at Spence's and little chance of an early deal to be able to window shop.
In conclusion, Boro still have a long way to go before they've assembled a promotion-challenging squad - at the moment, it's just a First XI and probably a weaker one than the one that ended last season in seventh. Plenty of work to be done in the coming weeks but at least Wilder now has some money to spend - hopefully he'll find the right players soon!
Shame about Mooy. HE’s a quality player. I wonder if MFC are in some ways in an equivalent position to the Jackie Charlton annus mirabilis. Do we need a genius creative player who can play the passes even if they don’t run too much. I’m not saying someone who runs as little as Murdoch but how would someone like Juan Mata or his equivalent fit in for a year with an option for another.
utb
I see that the media are now beginning to building up the hysteria about Marcus Tavernier being sold with Everton the front runner because they 'want' him and they are leading the race.
If we start losing valued and key members of the old squad I don't think the manager will ever be able assemble a new squad to make the necessary challenge for promotion. I know it's only money, £15million apparently, but at some point Boro surely have to say no, please go away.
UTB,
John
Not good news that Tavernier is reputedly being sought after by 4 Premiership clubs. I suppose it happens when you’ve got a talented player.
A fee of £15 m has been touted- I’m sure any of the 4 Clubs could afford it.
I would have been happier if Boro’s response had been “ he’s not for sale”.
To lose him would be a blow to team building , at a time when Boro are desperately in need of 2 goal scorers - and another 1 or 2 players.
Philip of Huddersfield
Given the apparent number of clubs reported to be interested in Tav, it seems almost inevitable that at some point one of them will present a package that meets the £15m price tag - with various add-ons to haggle over.
It would be hard to imagine Tav wouldn't interested in a move given he's probably on around £4k a week at Boro and would likely get at least five times that in the PL.
Wilder should start planning alternatives but Boro won't get a similar player as if there was one he'd no doubt be already being targeted by the gang of four chasing our player.
Though given Boro's problems in signing any player - Wilder says in the Echo that he's hopeful of get a few through the door in the next week to ten days and that's not because he thinks deals are imminent but more that we simply need to before the season starts.
The tried and tested method of signing players has usually been to throw money at it - the problem will be if Tav goes as well then sellers will know Boro have £30m or so in their back pocket and prices quoted will no doubt be inflated - especially as the window creeps to a close.
With Tav, Riley McGree and Caolan Boyd-Munce in reserve, Boro are pretty well stocked in left-footed central midfielders.
If, for instance, Boro got their £15m for Tav, plus the Spence money, and used it to bring in two from Armstrong, Gyokeres and Riis Jakobsen - maybe even with a bit of change - that could be pretty good business looking at the squad overall.
It would be disappointing to lose Tav and regular readers will know I'm a big fan of his but there is a business to run and gaining two quality strikers whilst losing Spence and Tav would be a step forward for this squad.
Middlesbrough are plotting a move for Brentford striker Marcus Forss
OFB
Forss is 23 and is tied to a long contract with Brentford.
However he is not prolific and only scored one goal in eleven appearances for Hull when on loan in the second half of last season. Made plenty of appearances in Brentford’s promotion season but only scored seven goals.
Has had a couple of longish injuries during his time so no more than a loan I would hope.
I was disappointed to learn that we had missed out on Davies as I believe together with Fry and Lenihan we would have had the strongest back three in the Championship.
Winning teams are built on solid defences and we need to get that sorted as much as we do in finding forwards.
Sadly it’s beginning to have a familiar feel about it, with missed targets and difficulty in acquiring new recruits despite the usual talk about getting people in early; even CW is beginning to sound slightly concerned and admitting he is expecting more in the next few weeks not because he is aware of imminent signings but because of the shortage of numbers!
Doesn’t feel like we are currently building a promotion winning side. 😎