Middlesbrough FC transfer news: Jonathan Woodgate quizzed on signings after Gateshead win

Boro are still yet to sign an outfield player this summer despite a shortage of senior options in some areas, yet Woodgate is confident the club will make a breakthrough in the next few weeks.

“There’ll be some movement,” said Woodgate after Boro’s 3-1 pre-season win over Gateshead. “In football, you have to keep freshening things up.

“With the Financial Fair Play rules, I’ve said that there’ll be players who come and go, and we have to work the market really well.

“We’ve got a recruitment set-up there, and they know what’s going on. They’ve got their finger on the pulse, and I’ve got plenty of belief in them. We’ll see how many we get in.”

Woodgate has been keen to promote the club’s academy prospects in the last few weeks, which may help plug some of the gaps in the senior side.

When asked how many players Boro are looking to bring in this summer, Woodgate replied: “It’s difficult to say for definite at the minute because they’re not all fit yet.

“I want to keep looking at them because I want to make sure everyone gets a chance.

“I’ve only had two games, so I want to keep going with them and giving them more confidence because you never know where you’re going to go from there.”

Boro saw most of the ball against Gateshead but struggled to break their opponents down when the hosts sat back. It’s an area Woodgate is looking to work on ahead of the new Championship campaign.

On the performance, Woodgate added: “In terms of winning the ball back higher up the pitch, that was what I wanted. We need to work on some of the passing, getting in between the lines when they drop deep.

“At the Riverside, you are going to get teams that camp in, so we need to find ways of creating more chances against teams like that.”