Middlesbrough face a race against time to have Micah Hamilton in their squad to take on Swansea City.
Boro’s 2024/25 Championship season is now just one day away from getting underway.
Michael Carrick will welcome Luke Williams’ Swansea City to the Riverside Stadium on Saturday, August 10th, for a 12:30 pm BST kick-off.
Middlesbrough head into the new season aiming to win promotion back to the Premier League for the first since since 2017.
The Teessiders missed out on the playoffs by four points last time out but have been working hard behind the scenes to ensure that does not happen again.
Boro have already completed four signings during the 2024 transfer window to bolster Carrick’s first-team squad and more incomings are expected shortly.
Middlesbrough are close to signing Tommy Conway from Bristol City in a £5m deal, beating off interest from Hull City and Burnley to get a deal over the line.
When Middlesbrough must complete Micah Hamilton transfer for Swansea debut
On top of Conway, the North East outfit are closing in on a second attacking signing.
Micah Hamilton will sign for Middlesbrough from Manchester City for a fee of £3.5m, including add-ons.
The City starlet will add some much-needed depth to the right of Boro’s attack and Carrick will no doubt want him available this weekend, especially as Marcus Forss remains sidelined.
Now, Teesside Live have revealed when Boro must complete a deal for Hamilton in order for him to feature versus Swansea.
It is understood Middlesbrough will have to complete the transfer and register Hamilton by 12pm on Friday, August 9th, for him to be available for selection over the weekend.
Crucially, Boro do not need to announce the deal to the public by then, but the relevant authorities must be informed by this point.
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Why Micah Hamilton will not start for Middlesbrough vs Swansea City
While a deal for Hamilton could be completed in time for him to play some part against Swansea, a start for the new addition seems unlikely.
The 20-year-old has seen limited action with Man City during their 2024 pre-season, so is unlikely to be up to match speed.
Furthermore, Carrick should be well aware of the dangers that can come from rushing a new player into a team.
Middlesbrough had to sign a plethora of players in the summer of 2023 following the exit of several key stars.
This forced Carrick to feature a lot of new signings who had not had time to adjust to the club or his style of play.
Boro’s form was greatly impacted by this issue, failing to win their opening five league matches.
The Teessiders learned from this mistake in 2024 and completed the bulk of their summer business before pre-season began.
But the late addition of Hamilton means it will likely be some time before he starts a Championship game, even with Forss still out.