Middlesbrough desperately needed to sign a striker last month. But in the end, they ended up losing their best remaining attacking player.
Middlesbrough lost former star striker Chuba Akpom last summer, and failed to properly replace him.
Emmanuel Latte Lath and Sam Greenwood were two names brought in to bolster the attacking ranks but neither have proved overly-prolific, with the former now injured.
Boro then went into the winter deadline needing a new no.9; Michael Carrick‘s side failed to bring one in, instead selling Morgan Rogers to Aston Villa in a reported £16million deal.
It was a good deal, perhaps too good to turn down, but Middlesbrough now have an uphill battle if they want to reach the top six this season.
Free agent market will now be scoured
Middlesbrough though look set to scour the free agent market in the coming weeks with head of football Kieran Scott revealing that the club will definitely consider free agent signings.
Expect strikers to be the main priority, and expect the club to stumble across a prolific former Championship striker in Lucas Joao.
The 30-year-old former Sheffield Wednesday and Reading man was released by Chinese outfit Shanghai Port last month.
In 241 total Championship appearances, Joao has 71 goals, with 19 of those coming for Reading in the 2020/21 season alone.
Lucas Joao could become Middlesbrough cult hero
Joao, wherever he played, was always well-liked by fans for his natural ability and doggedness in attack.
He’s a bustling forward who can score some impeccable goals, though he also did the basics very well; poaching goals, latching onto crosses and loose balls and so on.
Joao is prolific at Championship level and in his last couple of years at Reading, he seemed to put the worst of his injury woes behind him, and now after a brief stint in China he might fancy a return to England and a return to the Championship.
Middlesbrough would be a great move for him as he could no doubt get a lot of game time given the lack of out and out strikers. And having just been playing regular football in China, he’ll no doubt be way fitter than a lot of other players on the market.
A deal until the end of this season or the end of next season could ideal to give Joao another crack at the Championship, and for Boro it could prove to be a really shrewd and effective signing.