Middlesbrough closing in on 14-cap international

Middlesbrough are now closing in on a deal to recruit Brentford striker Marcus Forss, according to a report from the Northern Echo.

Boro’s reignited interest in the Finn was reported by Football Insider yesterday, with Chris Wilder in desperate need of at least two strikers with former loanees Andraz Sporar, Aaron Connolly and Folarin Balogun no longer available as options.

On top of this, both Chuba Akpom and Uche Ikpeazu have been told they can depart the Riverside this summer, leaving Duncan Watmore and the young Josh Coburn as their only options at this stage with Boro yet to address this area with a signing.

However, they are seemingly closing in on Forss who was the subject of plenty of second-tier interest during last winter, though Hull City managed to win the race to take him on loan with then-new owner Acun Ilicali working tirelessly to get the deal over the line.

Boro, however, were one club believed to have been interested in taking him to the Riverside back then along with Fulham and Nottingham Forest, both of whom are now in the Premier League and have the funds to look at permanent deals instead.

This could potentially open up the opportunity for the Teesside outfit to get this deal over the line, with more talks planned between them and the Bees in the coming days.

The Verdict:

If they were able to recruit him permanently, that would be excellent for Boro who may be able to afford to conclude a longer-term agreement with Djed Spence’s imminent sale likely to generate an eight-figure fee.

However, the Bees may not want to let him go for cheap and this is why Wilder’s side need to weigh up whether a loan deal could potentially be a better option at this stage, with the Finn not guaranteed to be a success at