Middlesbrough FC should sign ideal Ben Doak alternative - He plays for Liverpool as well | OneFootball

Middlesbrough are losing loanee Ben Doak, but their strong reputation with young players could help them capture a replacement from the same club.

Middlesbrough may have lost Ben Doak following the conclusion of his season-long loan spell at the Riverside Stadium from Liverpool, but they could repeat the same trick by raiding Anfield for yet another exciting young talent ahead of the 2025/26 campaign.

Doak had an impressive season for Middlesbrough, racking up 24 appearances and registering three goals and seven assists before seeing his campaign cut short by injury, while he also made his Scotland debut against Poland while playing for them.

But the season ended in disappointment, with Michael Carrick's team fading from view in the chase for a play-off place and just one win in their last six matches leaving them in 10th place in the final table.

Transience is at the heart of the loan market

To finish the season on such a down-swing has ramifications. Carrick's position has been considered under threat, and Middlesbrough will need a strong start to the season if he's to remain there much beyond the early autumn.

Then there's the impact it has upon the club's transfer dealings. Ben Doak was an ideal player for Middlesbrough, but Liverpool have decided that they've seen enough and have put him up for sale.

This transience is, of course, burned into the very nature of the loan market. But while losing loan players at the end of these spells can be frustrating, it can also open up opportunities.

Lewis Koumas could be Middlesbrough's Ben Doak replacement

There is another player who could be available to Middlesbrough who could plug the gap left by Doak's departure from the club.

Lewis Koumas spent last year on loan at Stoke City. He could be a little inconsistent at times, but he made 43 appearances for them and scored three goals and could flourish at another club.

Figures from Sofascore

Middlesbrough have an advantage because of their reputation for developing young players who've ended up there temporarily. Reviewing the products of their academy in June 2024, Teesside Live were able to identify 17 who they could label as "exciting".

Not all of these young players will come good. That's the nature of professional football. But if it's treated as an odds game, then Middlesbrough's reputation as a club with a strong academy, who improve players and can return them to their parent clubs as better players than when they arrived, and who have a manager who is known for working well with young players, strengthens their hand in any future loan negotiations.

And while Koumas could be inconsistent, he showed flashes of brilliance at Stoke last season. Like Doak, he made his international debut in 2024, although this came shortly before he left Anfield for the Potteries that summer. The potential is there, and if Liverpool are looking to loan him out again, they will want to send him to a club that will improve him as a player.

With rumours circulating that Everton could be set to pay £30 million to make Ben Doak only the third player to directly cross Stanley Park in the Premier League era, Liverpool already know that Middlesbrough can improve players. If they could have the same effect on Lewis Koumas, it could significantly benefit both clubs.