Our Boro fan panel continues, asking who the best signing of the Kieran Scott era is.
After another successful summer transfer window, Kieran Scott and the Middlesbrough recruitment team are probably gearing up for a different kind of January.
Boro have filled their 25-man roster to the brim with eight new arrivals and no major losses, and despite an erratic start to the season, they are finally beginning to show signs of a team capable of realising their thrilling potential.
Another fantastic window resulted in more talented players joining the team. Aidan Morris has been the highlight of the newest round of arrivals, while loan players Ben Doak and George Edmundson have thrived in their own right, and Tommy Conway shows tremendous promise.
Scott’s summer transfer marked his sixth since joining Teesside from Norwich City. However, it took another 12 months until he attracted head of recruitment Chris Jones to join the club, and a few weeks later, the club signed Michael Carrick as head coach to provide Scott with a coach who better matched the concept.
It’s no surprise that recent transfer windows have seen significantly more success for Boro. With that in mind, we questioned this week’s fan panel: Who has been the best signing during the Kieran Scott era?
Our panel this week includes of YouTuber and talkSport journalist Phil Spencer, Boro Breakdown co-host Dana Malt, Boropolis co-founder Chris Cassidy, and Twe12th Man.
Phil Spencer
There’s a strong argument to say that Emmanuel Latte Lath is the best signing of the Kieran Scott era, while early signs suggest that Aidan Morris could well take that title in the future. However, it’s hard to look beyond the signing of Rav van den Berg.
Rav was signed as a relatively unknown teenage defender who was little more than a brilliant potential. He is now a staple in Michael Carrick’s side, and he deserves to be. It blows my mind that he’s just 20; his maturity, composure, and leadership at such a young age are astounding, and those qualities lead me to believe that he’s headed for the very top.
Not only is Van den Berg a superb player for Middlesbrough right now, but the minimal transfer fee paid appears to be a masterstroke given his extremely high ceiling in terms of development. Middlesbrough fans will be anxious to keep Rav for many years to come, but the truth is that his potential
That’s OK with me, and that’s all part of Kieran Scott’s recruitment strategy – all it means is that Middlesbrough will profit handsomely from a player who will soon play in the Champions League.
Who knows, if any transaction involving him can include the types of terms that we included into Morgan Rogers’ move to Aston Villa, Steve Gibson and Boro may be laughing. But, like every Boro supporter, I genuinely hope we can keep him around for a bit longer because he has the potential to be the best defender in the Championship and much more.
Dana Malt
There’s been an increasing list of solid additions under Kieran Scott, so picking one is difficult, but I’ll go with Rav van den Berg. Rav’s decision to sign someone who was admired by so many large clubs in Europe, including AC Milan, Borussia Dortmund, and Roma, is astute, but Boro’s move is also strong.
As a young player, I expected him to grind his way into the team and play only a few minutes at first, but once he got in, he hasn’t looked back. Of course, he’s hurt right now; why wouldn’t Boro’s injury troubles catch up with him?
He’s been excellent for Boro, maturing beyond his years and remaining poised when called upon to defend. His last-ditch, last-man tackle against QPR at Loftus Road last season pretty much sums him up.
This is a player that will undoubtedly bring Boro a good profit and go on to play at the highest level. A special mention goes to Ryan Giles and Cameron Archer. Those two were ideal signings for Boro at the time, but Rav is my favourite.
Chris Cassidy
Since Kieran Scott took over as Head of Football at Middlesbrough in September 2021, the club’s recruitment approach has clearly shifted. As a result, the football club has welcomed a number of interesting new players in recent years.
First, a special notice for some of the loans. Finally, it doesn’t feel appropriate to describe any player who was never owned by the football club as Scott’s best signing. However, given how important a few players were during Middlesbrough’s finest time under Michael Carrick, they need to be mentioned.
In January 2023, it appeared that almost every club in the second tier was attempting to sign Cameron Archer, and Boro was the one who secured his services. Archer’s brief stint on Teesside was a resounding success, with eleven goals and six assists in his twenty Championship matches.
Then there was Ryan Giles. When Boro failed to qualify for the Premier League in the play-offs that season, he was the only loanee who seemed like a relatively feasible objective. Despite two unimpressive appearances at different clubs since his time under Carrick, it speaks its own tale; a substantial segment of the fan base would welcome him back in a heartbeat.
Morgan Rogers, another of Scott’s top players, was never given the opportunity to show Boro fans what he was actually capable of, but he is now a member of the England side. Rogers joined the club for a low sum after a string of disappointing loan appearances, and less than a year later, he’s sparkling in the Premier League and Champions League. Financially, he has a good case for becoming number one.
Nonetheless, Scott has one evident jewel in his crown: Rav van den Berg. At the time of signing, the Dutch defender was an unknown, inexperienced eighteen-year-old. He concluded the season as a key member of Michael Carrick’s defence, earning Young Player and Player of the Season awards.
The twenty-year-old has already been called up to the Dutch Under-21s and is being scouted by the majority of Europe’s top teams. There is little question that when the time comes, he will most likely be the club’s record sale, and as such, he must be considered the best signing of the Kieran Scott period.
Stephen Jackson
What a difference a year makes; if you asked this question last year, you’d be having the same problems picking one for the wrong reasons because fans were watching players who were just starting to adjust to the club and strive for the first team.
Looking at the question now, it’s still a difficult decision to make, but for entirely different reasons, as we only have a few possibilities to pick from. If you want to go with the most beneficial signing, Morgan Rogers is the obvious choice because we made a significant profit on him within six months of him joining the club.
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