Opinion: Middlesbrough interest in Everton man looks to be well worth pursuing for key position

With three first-team signings already confirmed, Middlesbrough have had a busy start to the summer transfer window, and it seems they are not stopping there anytime soon.

According to reports from The Express, ‘Boro boss Chris Wilder is turning his attention to adding to his attacking options, with Everton striker Ellis Simms apparently on the radar at The Riverside Stadium.

Considering the circumstances, that is something that does look as though it would be a rather smart piece of business for Middlesbrough to get done this summer.

With Andraz Sporar, Folarin Balogun and Aaron Connolly having all left the club following the expiration of their loan deals at the end of last season, there is undoubtedly a need for extra firepower to be added to the squad going into the coming campaign.

That centre forward void is one that Simms is capable of filling, and the context behind a potential move, means you could argue there would be more reason to be confident about this deal paying off, than his most recent Premier League predecessors at the Riverside in Balogun and Connolly, who in 37 appearances between them, managed just five goals in total.

Prior to their temporary spells with ‘Boro last season, neither player had experienced a loan stint, with the exception of two games for Connolly in Luton in League One in 2019.

Instead, Balogun arrived at Middlesbrough with ten Arsenal appearances and two goals to his name, while Connolly had found the net eight times in 52 outings for Brighton.

By contrast, Simms does not have that extent of top level experience with his parent club under his belt, having only ever made just one senior appearance for Everton.

What he does have however, is a considerable amount of proven success when