Ipswich Town ‘missed out’ on Matt Crooks, Andraz Sporar is Teesside bound as pundit reveals Middlesbrough should have sealed a move for ‘talented’ Sheffield United winger

Ipswich Town 'missed out' on signing Matt Crooks to Middlesbrough (Photo by George Wood/Getty Images).

Here, we round-up all the latest stories that have emerged surrounding Middlesbrough today:

Ipswich ‘missed out’ on Crooks signing

Matt Crooks was one of the first new arrivals to join the Riverside this summer having left relegated Rotherham United to move to Teesside.

Crooks, 27, was a man in-demand this summer as Ipswich Town chief executive Mark Ashton revealed to the East Anglian Times, the Tractor Boys couldn’t beat off the interests of Middlesbrough to land the midfielder.

“I think there was one we missed out on and that was (Matt) Crooks. And look, we made big offers. He had a Championship offer though and he decided to go to the Championship. I can understand that.

“Looking back, I think that’s probably the only one that was a specific target that we wanted, we went for and we didn’t get.”

Burke “would’ve been good for Middlesbrough”

As deadline day approached, Middlesbrough were briefly linked with a late-move for Sheffield United’s Oliver Burke.

Neil Warnock even spoke about Burke, saying: “He’s a good player, Oliver. He’s alright, I like him.”

However, a deal failed to materialise and according to Mark Crossley, this was a missed opportunity for Boro.

Speaking about Burke to the Transfer Tavern, Crossley said: “He’s still a young lad and he needs to be playing football. Maybe a loan spell at Middlesbrough could’ve been the answer, which would’ve been good for Middlesbrough.

“He’s a good player, got loads of pace, loads of power. He’s definitely a talented player. He’s got pace to burn.”

Andraz Sporar on way to Teesside

At long last, Middlesbrough’s newest signing is on his way to Teesside having completed international duty with Slovenia.

Andraz Sporar joined Boro on a season-long loan deal on deadline day but did not travel to England to finalise the deal as he was called-up to the Slovenia squad for games against Slovakia, Malta and Croatia.

Slovenia finished the international break with one draw, one win and one defeat with their World Cup 2022 Qualification hopes hanging by a thread.

Unfortunately for Boro fans, Sporar only featured twice from the bench in these games, meaning he may need a few weeks to get to full fitness.

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