Having failed to keep themselves in the top flight for more than a year, Middlesbrough will now be plotting to try and make a move back to the Premier League after just a year in the Championship this season. They have picked up six points from their first four games but have scored just four goals in those games, showing their weakness in the attack.
They lack genuine width in attack and Garry Monk, the new manager at the Riverside is now looking to bring in Liverpool starlet Ryan Kent to the club this summer.
Transfer story
According to the Daily Mail, the Championship outfit are ready to offload Adama Traore this summer and could pocket up to £9m from French Ligue 1 outfit Lille, who have already agreed terms with the player. However, Monk wants to find an able replacement before letting him go and Ryan Kent is one of many such names.
Huddersfield Town’s Joe Lolley and Marvin Johnson of Oxford United are other options he is looking at but is the Liverpool man a decent option for the club?
Style of play and potential
A first-team regular at Barnsley in the previous season on loan from Liverpool, the 20-year old winger is easily one of the most exciting youngsters on show in the Premier League at the moment. He was a crucial part of Liverpool’s pre-season games but is yet to make an appearance this season and could be shipped out on loan.
Known for his freighting pace on the flank, Kent is a genuine winger, who loves to take on his man with every opportunity. Deceptively strong, the former Coventry City star picked up three goals and an assist in the Championship last season. His hold up play in the final third and confidence to take on even the best of defenders makes him a future star at Anfield, someone Liverpool will be reluctant to let go on a permanent basis.
He is tailor-made for the English game and it does not come as a surprise that the German manager at Anfield is ready to let him go away on loan yet again.
Chances at Boro
Monk has used a unique system at the club this season, using Patrick Bamford and Rudy Gestede on either side of Assombalonga, who leads the attack for his side. Christian Stuani, Stuart Downing, Jordan Rhodes have all played as a part of the front three, making it really hard for the Liverpool man to make it into the first-team.
However, the fact that Boro lack players who can add genuine width to their attack might give Kent a chance to shine under Monk. He has previous experience of the playing in the Championship and might even help the club back to the top flight, before moving back to Anfield as a better and more experienced player.
