Middlesbrough living proof that some of best footballers found in the shadows | OneFootball

Here I go, writing clickbait again, like when I write about Scottish football, abuse and other such social concerns. Nothing drives traffic like shallow pieces about football’s economics, gender and politics, eh.

When you write 1000 words about the colour red, someone will complain about you writing so much about green. It is very annoying but is typical of the current dystopia we are living through that such people thoughtlessly create.

You wait until I do a piece about the enlightened despotism in the 18th century and how it relates to transfer policy. Grrrrr, he’s on about political philosophy of the 1700s again. When will this site stop being so frivolous? It used to be so good! Pfft.

And is there anything quite so clickbait as Middlesbrough?

It may have passed you but a plague of potentially great players is regularly sourced from a club in a town you will likely never have a reason to visit and couldn’t even locate on a map. Indeed you can’t actually find Teesside on a map; it is a mythical place that only exists in the hearts and minds of its residents or natives.

But if you want a good player and can’t afford big club rejects, Middlesbrough FC should be your first port of call. Only those big rich clubs can compete with our hit rate, especially with English players. It is, perhaps, an unlikely post-industrial town to unearth talent, but some of the best things are found in the shadows.

Middlesbrough has given England their manager for 10 of the last 18 years, the last 10 of which have been an especially fertile period.

Enjoying Morgan Rogers? Thank the Boro, which is where Unai Emery bought him from for eight million quid after 33 games and seven goals.

Impressed by Djed Spence? That’s largely thanks to his four years and 70 games at the Riverside.

And that’s just the start. Marcus Tavernier has become an indispensable utility man for Bournemouth since leaving Middlesbrough, while Adama Traoré was a greased-up, flying fan favourite during his time at the Riverside.

Jason Steele is a Middlesbrough youth academy graduate, playing over 140 times for the club, and is now at Brighton & Hove Albion. Ben Doak of Bournemouth and Scotland is another. The young winger was sensational during his loan at Boro from Liverpool in the 2024/25 season and has quickly become a regular starter for his country. He is a crucial creative player and something of a Scotland hero.

That’s just the top-flight stars; there are many more elsewhere. Remember, Middlesbrough is a small, unfashionable, out-of-the-way place, regularly dismissed as ‘up there somewhere’. We’re a small asteroid in the football universe.

Chuba Akpom, who had a record-breaking 28-goal season for Boro in 2022/23, moved to Ajax and is now at Ipswich on loan. He should never have left but Middlesbrough is seen as a stepping stone to better opportunities and the 2,500-calorie parmos do have limited appeal.

Marten de Roon is currently at Atalanta and he was a standout for Boro during their 2016/17 Premier League campaign. His name is frequently linked with Premier League returns due to his high-level Champions League performances.

Mark Travers at Everton had a brief but highly impressive loan spell at Boro in early 2025. After returning to Bournemouth, he was snapped up by Everton in the summer of 2025 and began the season as the primary challenger to Jordan Pickford as goalkeeper.

Ben Gibson, nephew of Steve, now of Stoke City after leaving Boro in 2018 for £15m, spent several years in the Premier League with Burnley and Norwich City.

Rav van den Berg was one of Boro’s most talented young defenders and was the subject of heavy interest from Crystal Palace and Fulham in 2025 but he ultimately chose a move to the Bundesliga with FC Köln for a £10m-plus fee.

Rodrigo Muniz at Fulham had a relatively quiet loan spell at the Riverside in 2022/23 but he became one of the league’s most in-form players in late 2024, at one point winning the Premier League Player of the Month award.

Enough yet? No, there’s still the highly-rated Cameron Archer at Southampton. When on loan from Villa at Boro in 2023, he scored 11 goals in 20 games and was a fan favourite. He could probably return to the top flight quicker with Boro than with the Saints. Sometimes, even the players don’t seem to appreciate what is possible at the Boro. Or perhaps the town’s febrile nightlife is too much for them.

For a small club to be involved in the development of so many crucial players is quite remarkable and a testament to the coaching team. Because this isn’t a case of buying in expensive talent and developing them further. These players are not stars when they join Boro. And when Haydon Hackney is the next star to sign for a Premier League club, he will be following a well-worn path.

You never realised Middlesbrough are so important, did you? Don’t worry, Teesside is regularly dismissed, ignored or misunderstood. We’re used to it. And no, the accent isn’t like Geordie, you daft doyle. Writing about Middlesbrough FC? That’s just clickbait that this site used to be above.