Andy Robertson’s Liverpool teammate Ben Doak has joined Middlesbrough on loan for the 2024/25 season.
Middlesbrough completed two transfers on deadline day last month, with George Edmundson and Ben Doak arriving at the Riverside Stadium late on August 30th.
Edmundson’s deal was expected as Boro had been in the market for a new centre-back to add some much-needed depth at the back following an injury crisis that saw Michael Carrick without three of his four senior centre-halves.
However, the move for Doak came out of the blue, with the Teessiders fending off interest from Hull City to secure the 18-year-old’s signature for the 2024/25 season.
After signing so late on deadline day, the winger was not involved as Middlesbrough beat Cardiff City 2-0 on August 31st.
However, big things are already expected of the youngster in the North East after various figures came out in support of the player.
Liverpool pundit Craig Hignett has praised Doak, sharing an insight into what Middlesbrough fans can expect of him moving forward.
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Unfortunately for the Boro faithful, they will have to wait at least one more week to see the Liverpool loanee line out for their club.
Doak is on international duty with eight more Middlesbrough players at present and made his senior debut for Scotland on Thursday evening.
After the game, Liverpool left-back Andy Robertson was speaking about Doak and his move to Boro last month.
The defender also expressed praise for Middlesbrough manager Carrick and backed the former Manchester United man to help Doak succeed, as per Liverpool.com.
He said: “Michael Carrick from what I can see is a fantastic manager that will help him.
“He’s an exciting player, that’s what he is. He’s always been that from a young age.
“His pace, and his power, but there are also things he needs to work on and me and him have spoken about it. He knows that as well.”
When will Ben Doak make his Middlesbrough debut
With so much hype around his signing, Middlesbrough fans are no doubt keen to see Doak in action for the first time.
Following the September international break, Boro’s next Championship fixture takes place on September 14th versus Preston North End at the Riverside.
Doak had no time to train with his new teammates before leaving to link up with Scotland this week though, meaning it is probably unlikely we will see Carrick hand him a start against Preston.
Isaiah Jones’ form has dipped of late so Middlesbrough may wish to start rotating him more going forward.
But as Micah Hamilton has been at the club longer and is already embedded into the team, we will likely see the former Manchester City man ahead of Doak in the right-wing pecking order for now.
And given Middlesbrough now have no cup games to play until January, it will be harder for Carrick to hand Doak minutes as every game in the Championship is a must-win, meaning fewer risks can be taken.