A number of Middlesbrough players have shown their quality in the early stages of the campaign.
We are currently four games into the 2024/25 Championship season, with a brief pause on the horizon due to the September international break.
Middlesbrough have had a mixed start to the campaign, with wins over Swansea City and Cardiff City sandwiched between a defeat to Derby County and 2-2 draw with Portsmouth.
Said run leaves Michael Carrick and his men seventh in the Championship table after four games, five points off first-place Sunderland.
While results have been mixed for the Teessiders, a number of players have still stood out in the early stages of the campaign.
Aidan Morris shone vs Cardiff over the weekend and has received high praise from fans and pundits during his brief stint at the Riverside Stadium so far.
Elsewhere, Carrick praised Isaiah Jones and Anfernee Dijksteel after Boro beat Leeds United 3-0 in the first round of the League Cup last month.
More recently, Matt Clarke received high praise from a pundit, who dubbed the centre-back the most underrated defender in the second division.
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Middlesbrough midfielder Finn Azaz leads Championship in three key statistics
One player who has perhaps not received the recognition he deserves, at least from neutrals anyway, is Finn Azaz.
The midfielder signed from Plymouth Argyle in January and did struggle somewhat during his first six months in a Boro shirt.
However, the 23-year-old has been one of the club’s best players this season and the statistics back that up.
As per Opta, Azaz has recorded the most shots on target (nine), chances created (13) and total shots (17) of any Championship player so far this season.
The midfielder is not the only Middlesbrough player dominating the division going forward though, with Hayden Hackney, Lukas Engel, Luke Ayling and Morris also in the ten top for attacking sequence involvements in the Championship so far this term.
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Middlesbrough fans will not be surprised by Finn Azaz stats
Even without the stats to back it up, it is clear Azaz is really starting to find his feet on Teesside.
The attacking midfielder has already provided two assists in the opening four games of the Championship season – an impressive record when you consider Boro have only scored five goals so far.
But even away from the assists, Azaz is proving himself a constant attacking threat and has been far and away Middlesbrough’s most creative player this season.
There were question marks over his ability from some Boro fans last season and at the start of 2024/25, but they have all been put to bed following Azaz’s showings over the last month.
While Azaz performing well is good for most, it is keeping Alex Gilbert out of the eleven, which is a shame as the former Brentford man has impressed during the brief minutes he has been afforded this term.