Middlesbrough goalkeeper Liam Roberts is having a fine season on loan at Barnsley as the Tykes are seeking promotion back to the Championship having spent the last two years in League One.
The English shot-stopper moved to the Riverside Stadium back in 2022 as a free agent after his contract with Northampton Town expired. However, the former Walsall man played merely six matches last season for Boro, including only four in the Championship.
With Seny Dieng joining the Teesside club last summer to replace the outgoing Zack Steffen, it was clear that Roberts was not going to be Michael Carrick’s first-choice keeper and was allowed to leave on loan to the third-tier side.
This season, Roberts has already made 28 league appearances for Barnsley and has conceded 32 goals in total, keeping seven clean sheets in the meantime. Neill Collins’ side have the sixth-best defensive record in League One.
๐๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ด๐๐ฒ ๐ข๐ป๐ฒ ๐๐ผ๐ฎ๐น๐ ๐ฃ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐๐ฒ๐ป๐๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐งค
1๏ธโฃ Liam Roberts – 5.6
2๏ธโฃ Lukas Jensen – 4.7
3๏ธโฃ Viljami Sinisalo – 4.4
4๏ธโฃ Max Crocombe – 2.4
5๏ธโฃ Dan Grimshaw – 2.3Minimum 50% of team minutes played.
(Opta)#BarnsleyFC #UTB #WeAreImps #ECFC #AVFC #BAFC #UTMP #EFL pic.twitter.com/JYLbLDWavG
— Not The Top 20 Pod (@NTT20Pod) March 4, 2024
The goalkeeper’s loan deal expires at the end of the season but the 29-year-old has hinted that he would like to stay at the club in the future. Speaking to the Barnsley Chronicle, Roberts said [quotes via Boro News]:
โI havenโt really heard anything. I am loving it here and concentrating on what weโre doing. My personal situation is nothing to do with it.
โMy focus is getting Barnsley promoted. My time isnโt up yet and hopefully, it isnโt up in the future.โ
Writer’s View
Roberts has a market value of ยฃ212,000, according to Transfermarkt, and won’t become a regular under Carrick at Middlesbrough. The best thing for all parties in the future is for him to move on.
With the goalkeeper’s contract expiring at the end of the season with Boro, Barnsley can easily swoop in during the summer and snap him up for free, regardless of whether or not the club earn promotion to the Championship this campaign. After such a good season with the Tykes, a permanent move is likely over the coming months given the unlikelihood of Boro handing him a new deal.