Birmingham City and Hull City lose out to Middlesbrough in €5m transfer chase | OneFootball

Rokas Pukstas is reportedly closing in on a switch to the Riverside Stadium

Middlesbrough have reportedly fended off competition from Championship rivals, Birmingham City and Premier League newcomers, Hull City, as they close in on a deal for USMNT international midfielder, Rokas Pukstas.

That is according to a fresh update from Larry Henry Jr - via X - as Kim Hellberg's side look to make another statement transfer addition ahead of next Tuesday's 11PM deadline.

Middlesbrough are hoping to end a 10-year exile from the Premier League at the end of the Championship season under the Swede's management, having come close to doing exactly that on two counts, just months after Hellberg replaced Rob Edwards.

The North East outfit fell short in the automatic promotion race despite initially being in a healthy position to achieve their promotion ambitions, before losing out to the Tigers at Wembley on May 23rd after an unprecedented play-off campaign.

So far this summer, Steve Gibson has heavily backed Hellberg to go one step further with a number of high-profile signings, although the opening two matches of the Championship season have yielded mixed results with a 2-1 win and defeat each against Lincoln City and Blackburn Rovers.

Middlesbrough fend off Birmingham City and Hull City competition for Rokas Pukstas

Action Images

Despite losing the services of academy graduate and Championship Player of the Season, Hayden Hackney, to Everton, many would argue this transfer window has been a huge success for Middlesbrough.

They have already added the likes of Radek Vitek, Ashley Phillips, Max Arfsten, Sebastian Berhalter, Kyle Joseph and Will Lankshear, three of which were completed as packages which have, or could exceed the £10m mark.

Following a comfortable victory over Doncaster Rovers in the EFL Cup, it was then reported by Mike McGrath that Boro are set to win the race for Pukstas' signature from Hadjuk Split in a deal worth €5m.

The 22-year-old has scored 26 goals and provided 10 assists in 141 appearances for the Croatian side, and now it has also emerged that the Teesside outfit have scuppered both Birmingham and Hull in said transfer race, with the USMNT youth international linked with a move to the MKM Stadium earlier in the window, with Jakirovic a prior Croatian top-flight winner with Dinamo Zagreb.

When Rokas Pukstas is expected to finalise Middlesbrough transfer revealed

Action Images

After progressing through Hadjuk's youth system, Pukstas has since gone on to feature heavily in European competition for his current employers, who have been involved in qualifying rounds of the UEFA Europa League and UEFA Conference League during that timeframe.

Last season, the attacking midfielder scored 10 goals in 36 matches across all competitions as Hadjuk finished second to Dinamo despite an 18-point difference, subsequently qualifying for the Europa League qualifiers, in which they lost to Pafos FC in the second qualifying round, and are now hoping to make the league phase of the Conference League.

In their play-off round first leg against Polish side, Rakow, Pukstas operated in a deeper role in the 2-2 draw, meaning the tie hangs in the balance.

However, it has been reported that post-match, the Oklahoma-born man will travel to the north of England to finalise the deal ahead of Tuesday's deadline, with Middlesbrough hosting West Bromwich Albion at the Riverside between both dates.

Birmingham City have been beaten in another 'number 10' transfer race

Action Images

Whilst Middlesbrough will be hoping another move into the American market proves successful after the prior form shown by Adilson Malanda and Aidan Morris, Birmingham, although the report does not reveal an offer being put on the table, will have been defeated in another transfer race to solve the problem position of attacking midfield for Chris Davies.

Joe Gelhardt was on the verge of signing for Blues before Hull sealed a transfer reunion with the 24-year-old, and whilst Football League World's Birmingham City fan pundit has urged the club to sign Anis Mehmeti from Ipswich Town, it has now emerged that, whilst the Midlands side have been credited with interest, the Tractor Boys are demanding a £9m fee for the Albanian.

As such, Boro will also be hoping their divisional rivals, and potentially Hull in the top-flight, will be left feeling a sense of transfer regret.