Middlesbrough finished 5th last season and lost in the playoff semifinals to Aston Villa and thereby missed the bus towards Premier League qualifications. Tony Pulis will be looking to regather his troops once again to mount a better challenge in the upcoming season and the Riverside club’s preparation are in full swing as they have secured the signing of Sunderland midfielder Paddy McNair.
The deal is said to be worth £5m and this could be considered as a big coup for the Teessiders as quite a few Premier League clubs were after the former Manchester United player. The versatile midfielder made 18 appearances last season and scored 5 goals. He missed a good chunk of the last season due to injuries.
The 23-year-old made 27 appearances for Manchester United before he was deemed as not good enough and was sold to the Black Cats for £4.5m. After suffering successive relegation, it was expected that Sunderland will lose some of their talents and McNair will certainly be a big loss for Jack Ross.
At 23, he has already made 20 appearances for his national side Northern Ireland and is considered as one of the brightest stars of his country. Brighton and Hove Albion were also said to be interested in the versatile midfielder, however, now it seems like Middlesbrough have all but wrapped up the deal for the player.
McNair’s biggest asset is his versatility and he can play as a centre back as well. He is comfortable on the ball and reads the game well and will be more than a handy player for Tony Pulis in the upcoming season. It will be interesting to where the manager will use him as he can play as a centre back, defensive midfielder and as a right back as well.
Given his ability, it is expected that McNair will be a regular starter for his side and Middlesbrough have a good player at their disposal who is still young and has a huge potential to improve further. He even has a bit of experience of the top flight and that will certainly keep him in good stead.
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Tony Pulis will be aware that he will have to deliver in the upcoming season and getting a strong defensive player is certainly a step in the right direction. The 23-year-old has a creative side to his game as well and probably the best position for him will be to start just ahead of the back four as that way, he will have more of the ball and can dictate play and furthermore, he can thwart opposition attacks as well.
