£900k Middlesbrough player tipped for Riverside exit - 'I'll be absolutely shocked' | OneFootball

FLW's Boro fan pundit thinks that Dan Barlaser's time as a Middlesbrough player is all but over

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

Things just haven't quite worked out for Dan Barlaser at Middlesbrough after he arrived with such promise in January 2023.

The Gateshead-born midfielder had torn up League One with Rotherham United the year prior, and had seven assists in 28 games in the Championship before he made the lateral switch to the Riverside midway through the campaign.

The 28-year-old didn't have many chances to impress, and when he did, he was lacklustre. Boro fell away from being legitimate promotion contenders during the final couple of years of Michael Carrick's reign, and Barlaser was a fringe player in those disappointing sides.

Last season, he was an unused substitute in half of the Championship games, and despite there being a new face in the dugout this year, Barlaser still didn't get off the bench in league action, and Rob Edwards allowed him to move on loan to SPL side Hibernian on deadline day for the season.

Liam Day, FLW's Middlesbrough fan pundit, feels that the loan move has marked the beginning of the end for Barlaser at The Riverside, and doesn't envisage him wearing the Boro shirt ever again.

Damning Dan Barlaser claim made, as Middlesbrough fan pundit doesn't see a future at The Riverside

Despite excelling in League One and in a relegation-battling Championship side at Rotherham, Day doesn't feel that Barlaser was able to make that step up to a play-off-challenging second-tier team.

The central midfielder made just three starts in the latter half of the 2022/23 campaign at Middlesbrough, two of which came in defeats in the final three games of the season. He was an afterthought during Boro's play-off loss to Coventry City, and was then just a squad player for the next couple of years.

Now he's out on loan at Hibernian, and Day doesn't believe that he'll ever play for his club again.

"I'll be absolutely shocked if Dan Barlaser wore a Middlesbrough shirt again," the fan pundit said.

"He didn't show the ability needed for a team chasing the play-offs, despite being very good at Rotherham and being the league's top assister when he came here.

"Whether he just didn't fit the system or not, I don't know, but I don't see him wearing a Boro shirt again, and I'll be surprised if he doesn't leave permanently at the next possible window in January.

"I don't know how he's getting on in Scotland, but if he's doing well, then Hibs may be interested in a permanent deal, but he has no future at Middlesbrough, unfortunately.

"A good bloke in the dressing room, but that's it. He was a bit of a liability, and with the midfield options we have now, there's no chance of him getting in."

A January sale for Dan Barlaser will be optimal for Middlesbrough

Barlaser's contract is set to run out at the end of the current season, meaning that, unless a permanent sale is made in January, Middlesbrough risk losing the 28-year-old for nothing in the summer.

Unfortunately, Barlaser hasn't shown the quality he exhibited at Rotherham in terms of goal contributions during his short time at Hibernian so far, although he has started five straight in the league to date, indicating that he's emerging as an important name on David Gray's team sheet.

If Hibs do express an interest in making his loan deal permanent in the coming months, Boro may be inclined to accept anything that comes their way, just so they're covering some of their losses, after they spent £900,000 to bring him in just under three years ago.

It'll be one to keep an eye on this January for sure, but one thing seems certain, and that's that the 28-year-old has likely played his final game for Middlesbrough.