Whilst navigating the crazy, Christmas Championship schedule, Middlesbrough will encounter as many as eleven former players from their next four league opponents Ipswich, Hull, Swansea and Rotherham.
There will be a Boro reunion for a raft of professionals who plied their trade on Teesside, ranging from cult hero status, to one match wonders. But how many-if any-would you like to see back at the club? Here is a run down of the players Carrick’s class of 23 could line-up against over the coming weeks.
Massimo Luongo-Ipswich Town
The first player to mention, is someone who Boro fans may have forgotten about already. Massimo Luongo was signed at the beginning of last season under Chris Wilder and released again in January of the same campaign. The Australian, having been without a club since his release at Sheffield Wednesday in 2019 struggled for fitness and managed only one game whilst at Boro.
In fairness, Boro had a midfield that saw someone as good as Alex Mowatt struggle for games, so his departure was no surprise. What has been surprising, is his form for high-flying Ipswich. He has played in every game, but ironically, he will be missing against Boro due to accumulating 5 yellow cards.
Sam Morsy-Ipswich Town
The Egyptian enforcer, Sam Morsy is a player that I imagine few would enjoy playing against. He enjoyed a decent spell at Middlesbrough under Neil Warnock and it was, in all honesty, something of a surprise he was allowed to leave.
I’m sure there are a good few Boro fans who would admit that we could do with a bit of ‘Morsy-like’ protection in the current side. The only thing you could assume is that being the other side of 30, maybe the club thought at the time, that we’d already seen the best of him. He appears to be proving otherwise though, and fans of ‘The tractor Boys’ insist he is integral to their success.
Similar to Luongo in that he has played nearly every game, Morsy is a big player in that Ipswich side. The only one league game missed-as you might have guessed-was through suspension. He has amassed 8 yellow cards this term, but any Boro fan will have fully expected that to be the case having seen his style whilst he played in the red of Middlesbrough.
What are the chances of him picking up his ninth yellow against Howson or Crooks? worth a flutter I’d say.
Cyrus Christie-Hull City
He has two assists from right-back this season and has started eight games out of 19. He has frequently appeared as a substitute though, making nine appearances from the bench. His marauding style and willingness to join attacks means he will be someone Boro must keep an eye on if they come up against him. Christie was an attacking full-back for Boro in the days of Garry Monk, and we all know how his time on Teesside went. He made 26 appearances whilst on Teesside, scoring once and getting three assists.
Aaron Connolly-Hull City
Something of a pantomime villain whilst at the Boro. His off the field antics threatened to derail his career whilst on loan at the club, but he was favoured on many occasions by Chris Wilder over Folarin Balogun, much to many supporters’ dismay. You have to give him credit this season though, he has five goals, having made only six starts and ten substitute appearances. Obviously, the script is already written for him to bag against Boro.
Yannick Bolasie-Swansea City
Bolasie was a joy to watch during his loan spell. It wasn’t always fluent, flowing football under Warnock, as plenty will testify, but Bolasie had so many tricks, he could fashion chances from nothing. We did not see the best of him, but glimpses were enough to suggest that there was still a player in there. Generous to a fault in terms of community work in the area too. It will be fascinating to see what the winger has left at the ripe age of 34.
Nathan Wood-Swansea City
Nathan came through the academy ranks at Middlesbrough, following in the footsteps of his father Dean Gordon who played in the Premier League with Boro. He divides opinion amongst fans, with some suggesting he should have been kept and others feeling like he was destined to never quite reach his potential.
During the summer, Southampton’s Russell Martin was rumoured to be keen on taking the towering centre-back to the south coast, with a fee of around £10 million quoted. That would have made Boro a nice little profit as it is understood that the hierarchy inserted a sell-on clause when they let him go.
Kyle Naughton-Swansea City
Some younger fans could be forgiven for not being able to recall the right full-back playing for Middlesbrough, after all it was 13 years ago that the then youngster attempted to make his mark having arrived on loan from Tottenham Hotspur. He only made 15 appearances for the Boro, but acquitted himself well. Now, as an experienced professional at the age of 35, he has to accept that he won’t play as many games at this level. Nevertheless, he has been an excellent servant for the Welsh side, totting up 290 appearances over the years, scoring 6 goals and bagging 11 assists. He is more often than not on the subs bench these days.
Dani Ayala-Rotherham United
Rotherham picked him up for free this season. It may surprise a few to learn that he is still only 33-years-old, it seems like he has been around forever.
Ayala was one half of one of the most impressive centre-back pairings in modern Boro history. Playing alongside Ben Gibson, Ayala helped Aitor Karanka’s side to promotion, breaking nearly every defensive record in the process. Not only was he a part of a team that were dubbed clean sheet kings during that stellar season in 2015/16, he also scored some extremely important goals. The away match at Nottingham Forest springs to mind, but there were many others.
His record of 23 goals scored and 7 assists is frankly staggering for a big burly centre-back. He may not have been the most cultured at times, but he knew how to defend, and he was a real weapon at set-pieces. Arguably played his best football at Boro, he won’t be forgotten in a hurry.
Jordan Hugill-Rotherham United
It never quite worked out for Jordan at Boro. A local lad, nobody wanted to do well more than him, but for whatever reason, it never felt a good fit for the target man. He has scored goals wherever he has been though and has been a thorn in Boro’s side on occasions he has played against them, particularly whilst at QPR. Managed three goals this season in a struggling Millers side.
Lee Peltier-Rotherham United
‘Pelts’ was essentially used as cover for most of his spell at the club, but he rarely let anyone down. A strong defender who can operate at centre-back or full-back, Peltier was a solid competitor and always did a job when called upon. Let’s not forget that penalty against Man Utd too. Played ten games and scored two goals this season.
Grant Hall-Rotherham United
Arrived at Boro from QPR, but was never really able to establish himself as a first choice centre-back. He was on Teesside for a total of three years, managing only 28 appearances. He did have a couple of loan spells at Rotherham before making the move permanent during the summer of this year.