Garry Monk has been reunited with Swansea City defender Connor Roberts as the full back has joined Middlesbrough on a season long loan. Monk has raided his former club to hijack his first loan arrival of the season.
The player hasn’t featured in Swansea’s senior side for a single time but having known him since his Swansea days, Monk has taken a bit of a gamble which could eventually end on a positive note. Basically a right back, he is equally fluent on the opposite side of the defence.
Monk is trying to give the team an uplift following a disappointing last season as the Riversiders were demoted to the Championship.
Roberts showed his class during a loan spell with Yeovil Town as the defender was adjudged the player of the season at the club. But his development hasn’t shaped that way everyone had hoped and he has been confined to the background after a short stint with the Swansea U-23 side last term.
Monk knows the capability of the player and wants to take this opportunity to grind out the best from the youngster. Players like Ronaldo Vieira and Charlie Taylor flourished under his guidance at the Elland Road last season and he could repeat the feat with the player at Teesside.
Monk had a very close look at the player during his spell at the Liberty Stadium as he took special care of the younger bunch at the club’s training ground. The Wales U-21 international only signed a new contract last year but is scheduled to spend the next season at the Riverside Stadium.
Monk has very little time to prepare himself in his new surroundings having guided Leeds United to the seventh place in the Championship last season. The Whites were quite brilliant throughout the last campaign but a late collapse saw them miss the playoff spot by a whisker.
Having already played in the Championship, the 21-year-old has a brief idea of how the matches are played in the second tier. The more physical approach of the second tier is very tough to adapt to but Roberts won’t have much of an issue thanks to his loan spells.
Defensively he is very composed and his attacking ability is also very encouraging giving Monk a whole lot of options. Monk is trying to gather a bunch of determined players who would be able to give their best throughout the next season as Boro will be pushing for a promotional battle definitely.
