Coventry City and Middlesbrough in 24-team transfer scramble for defender | OneFootball

The Sky Blues and Boro are keeping tabs on Justin Haak, but they're far from alone in their pursuit of the American

Leading Championship pair Coventry City and Middlesbrough are among a whole host of clubs interested in versatile New York City FC defender Justin Haak, according to reports.

The Sky Blues and the Teessiders both went into the November international break in the top two positions in the second tier of English football, although the latter have had somewhat of a chaotic two-week break having had to replace former manager Rob Edwards, who headed for Wolves.

Kim Hellberg of Hammarby looks set to take the role though, and with the 37-year-old Swede seemingly in place, they can look forward to the upcoming winter transfer window at the start of 2026, which is what Coventry and Frank Lampard will also be looking at too in a bid to strengthen their hand for the second half of the campaign.

Coventry City and Middlesbrough keen on Justin Haak - alongside 22 other clubs

One player that both Cov and Boro seem to be in for is New York City FC midfielder Justin Haak, whose contract with the Boys in Blue is set to expire at the end of the year, with the MLS season still ongoing in the play-off stage.

That is a stage Haak is currently competing in, with the 24-year-old being an ever-present for NYCFC in the 2025 season having started all 37 matches, and after his club dispatched of Dean Smith's Charlotte FC in Round One of the Eastern Conference play-offs, they will take on Philadelphia Union on Sunday night in the East semi-finals in a one-legged clash.

Ahead of that contest, amNewYork have reported that the aforementioned Championship duo of Coventry and Middlesbrough are both interested in Haak's services ahead of his free agent status at the end of 2025, but there are also four other unnamed second tier clubs who are showing an interest too.

To add to that, two 'mid-table' Bundesliga teams from Germany are reported to be circling too, and domestically, 16 MLS franchises are keen to take Haak away from NYCFC due to his performances over the course of the 2025 campaign, making it a mammoth 24 clubs who are said to be interested.

There will therefore be a watchful eye over his showing against Philadelphia at 00:45 BST on November 24, as Haak - who can play in midfield as well as the centre-back position he's occupied for most of the year - looks to put on a showing for his suitors who are circling for his services.

Justin Haak is in-demand but Coventry City & Middlesbrough surely have more pressing transfer business to do

On a free transfer, and given the level of consistency he's seemingly showed in the MLS over the course of the year, Haak could end up being a bargain pick-up for another club, whether that is another franchise across the Atlantic Ocean or for a European side.

But for the two named clubs of the Championship that are apparently keen on Haak's services, you have to think that in the centre-back position he's been playing this season, they are both pretty well-stocked in that respect.

Coventry's partnership of Bobby Thomas and Liam Kitching has been imperious so far, and with the presence of both Luke Woolfenden and Joel Latibeaudiere on the bench, Frank Lampard has enough cover to push on for the rest of the season.

As for Middlesbrough, they're already set to welcome an MLS defender to the club in January in the form of Adilson Malanda, with the 24-year-old Frenchman joining from Charlotte FC for $8 million, and he will add to the likes of Alfie Jones, Dael Fry and George Edmundson in the middle of the Boro back-line.

Boro aren't averse to shopping in the American market, having signed both Riley McGree and Aidan Morris from the MLS as well as the imminent arrival of Malanda, but Haak would add to an already strong bunch of options, and it would be a struggle to see where game-time would come.