Middlesbrough are confident they can sign one player on transfer deadline day.
Boro had one clear transfer need ahead of Friday’s transfer deadline.
Middlesbrough were hampered by injury woes in 2023/24 and they have continued into the current campaign.
Dael Fry, Darragh Lenihan, Rav van den Berg and George McCormick have all picked up injuries over the summer, leaving the Reds with just one senior centre-back available.
Matt Clarke has done an admiral job in the early stages of 2024/25 but is finding it tough to sure up Boro’s backline alongside out-of-position and inexperienced players like Luke Ayling and Harley Hunt.
In turn, it came as little surprise when Boro News learned on Wednesday that Middlesbrough are in talks to sign a centre-back this week.
With so little time remaining in the window, a high-class player is unlikely to be able to leave their current club, with the Teessiders instead exploring the loan market.
Middlesbrough confident about signing player Wayne Rooney loves
It emerged recently that Middlesbrough want to sign George Edmundson from Ipswich Town.
The 27-year-old made his Premier League debut earlier this month against Manchester City but is likely to leave the Tractor Boys today with the likes of Portsmouth, Watford, Blackburn Rovers and Hull City all linked alongside Boro.
However, the Northern Echo report that Middlesbrough are now confident of securing a deal for Edmundson right now.
Before signing for Ipswich, the centre-back spent time with Derby County, where he was praised for his ‘courage’ by then-manager Wayne Rooney, as per the Daily Record.
Who will Middlesbrough start at centre-back vs Cardiff City
Should Boro indeed make Edmundson their eighth signing of the summer, which is looking likely, he will probably not be ready in time to start this weekend.
Middlesbrough face Cardiff City in a 12:30pm Championship clash in Wales on August 31st and have limited options at the back.
Speaking on Thursday, as per Teesside Live, Michael Carrick confirmed Dael Fry and Darragh Lenihan will not be back until after the international break.
He said: “Dael has had a bit of a calf problem he’s coming back from and Darragh has had tendinitis in and around his achilles.
“Thankfully it’s not the issues they were out with before but it has stopped them from coming back as quickly as they would have liked and we would have liked.
“After the international break, we’ll try to get them back in and around it as soon as we can.”
In turn, a makeshift pairing of Ayling and Clarke is expected to start the game in Cardiff this weekend.