Middlesbrough have struck an agreement with Championship rivals Leeds United over a season-long loan for striker Sam Greenwood, according to Sky Sports.
The 21-year-old has been allowed to leave Elland Road on a temporary basis in order to gain regular first team football. News of his availability alerted a host of Championship clubs and it was reported earlier today that a four-way tussle between Middlesbrough, Stoke City, Preston North End and Swansea City had emerged.
The striker featured as a substitute in last night’s EFL Cup second round defeat against Salford City and came close to winning the tie at the death when he saw a free kick rattle off the crossbar. He tucked away his penalty in the resulting shootout, but eventually saw his side exit the competition when their League Two opponents emerged victorious.
Boro’ boss Michael Carrick had been keen to bring in a new attacker before the end of the transfer window as he looked to replace the goals lost by the sale of Chuba Akpom, who joined Dutch giants Ajax earlier this month. It now appears as though they have won the race for England under-21 international Greenwood, with Sky Sports claiming that an agreement has been struck between the two sides.
The youngster has made 35 appearances for Leeds since his debut in 2021, with his only goal coming in the 4-3 Premier League win over Bournemouth at the end of the 2021/22 campaign.
Middlesbrough have endured a torrid start to the season, losing three of their opening four league games. With just a point on the board so far, the Teesside club will be hoping to get their season up and running on Saturday when they host Queens Park Rangers at the Riverside Stadium.
Writer’s View
Sam Greenwood is a player with bags of potential, but just needs regular game time to be able to get into his stride. A loan move at this stage of his career is the right option, particularly as minutes will be difficult to come by at Leeds following the recent arrival of Joel Piroe from Swansea City.
Middlesbrough will provide a great opportunity for the player, but it is perhaps surprising to see that goal-shy Sunderland were not amongst the interested parties, especially as he he had previously been on the books at the club as a youngster.
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