“Very talented” – Hull City excitement over Middlesbrough favourite as Ruben Selles question raised
A return to the Championship with Hull City seems imminent, but Matt Crooks ended his nearly three-year tenure with Boro in February when he signed for MLS team Real Salt Lake.
With what was reportedly a “significant fee” for the 30-year-old, Middlesbrough was able to sign the tall attacking player to a three-year contract with the Utah state team. After 115 games for Middlesbrough, Crooks decided to end his career with the Teessiders.
His two-and-a-half-year stay in the North East saw him become a cult figure among Boro fans, scoring 23 goals and dishing out 15 assists while playing with a wide range of players, managers, and roles.
| Matt Crooks’ Middlesbrough career (all competitions), as per Transfermarkt | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Appearances | Goals | Assists |
| 2021/22 | 44 | 11 | 3 |
| 2022/23 | 40 | 7 | 6 |
| 2023/24 | 31 | 5 | 6 |
Despite a very convincing 3-3 draw with Leeds United on Saturday afternoon, the Tigers are currently in the final
relegation spot and are not in the position that many had anticipated them to be at this point in the season. Ruben
Selles’ first goal after joining from Reading in December was to stabilise the team.
Numerous names in a variety of positions have already been connected to a move to the MKM in order to do this,
which may offer a pleasant balance of youth and experience to move Hull up the Championship rankings. According
to Barry Cooper of Hull Live and James Hoggarth of BBC Radio Humberside, Crooks is one such name.
The Middlesbrough verdict as Matt Crooks closes in on Hull City switch
Despite being away from English football for less than a year after leaving the Riverside, the two local reporters
stated above have explained that the 30-year-old midfielder is expected to join the team permanently from the MLS
team. The Leeds native will sign a two-and-a-half-year contract in East Yorkshire after preliminary reports on
Monday stated that he was having a medical with Hull.
We asked Jasper Hudson, a Middlesbrough supporter for FLW, what he thought of the move to Hull and if he was
shocked that it happened so quickly after he left for MLS.
“I believe the Matt Crooks transfer is a very intriguing one,” he stated.
“It caught me a bit off guard. I did think him leaving Middlesbrough was, sort of, the end of his time in England.
“Or at the very least in the Championship, but as a player, he’s definitely got the ability to help Hull.
“The things I remember best with him at Boro was his link-up play and technical ability, which goes hand-in-hand with his obvious physicality and height.
“I think he can help Hull, although I’m not particularly sure where he would best fit in the 4-3-3 that they played against us.
“But he is a very talented player and it should be interesting to see if he’s still at that level, or if, with playing in the MLS, he has lost his sharpness.
“It remains to be seen whether they can accommodate him in their system and whether that will be a system that he can work in.”
Matt Crooks’ potential impact at Hull City
Since moving from Rotherham to the Riverside in 2019, Crooks has gained some fan loyalty, and his moniker “Tree”
has become recognisable. That demonstrates that, in contrast to players like Steven Alzate and Gustavo Puerta, he
has a far greater physical and aerial presence in the centre of the park.
In addition to complimenting the others in the middle of the park on his ability to smash the box, they are under six
feet tall. Regan Slater, who nearly scored a second goal for Hull against Leeds, has been the most adept midfield
player at sprinting past and into the penalty box.
That specific aspect of Crooks’ skill set is arguably the best; like Slater in recent games, the rangy midfielder supports
the center-forward as a No. 8 or No. 10. Crooks should play a similar function to cutbacks and crosses into the box,
which was a staple of Harvey Knibbs’ playing for Selles at Reading.
Fans of Middlesbrough may find it odd to watch Crooks in the upcoming seasons as he appears to be the Spaniard’s
first acquisition as Tigers manager. His skills and background might be essential to surviving the autumn.
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