Top 7 highest paid Middlesbrough players in 2026/27 | OneFootball

FLW looks at who Capology estimates to be the highest-paid players at the Riverside this heading into next season

Middlesbrough are keen to go one better than their play-off final defeat last season in the 2026/27 campaign, as exciting head coach Kim Hellberg embarks on his first full year in the Riverside dugout.

Boro ran out of steam towards the end of last season, winning just two of their final 10 games of the campaign, seeing them fall away from the automatic promotion race, which they led heading into the Easter Weekend.

In the play-offs, despite good showings in both of the semi-final legs, they weren't able to put Southampton away, losing to them in extra time. And when they were reinstated following the Saints' expulsion after they were found guilty of spying on Boro's training sessions, Kim Hellberg's side ran out of gas late on against Hull City, losing to them at Wembley.

It's evident that Middlesbrough need quality additions across the field and more depth in the squad if they are to push on towards the top two under Hellberg, but for now, who are the highest-paid players at the Riverside heading into the main stages of the transfer window?

According to Capology's estimates, here are the top seven highest earners at Middlesbrough.

Neto Borges - £20,000 p/w

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Kicking off the list with someone that Kim Hellberg is yet to see in a Middlesbrough shirt, Neto Borges earns an estimated £20,000 per week at the Riverside, level with four others who we will look at shortly.

Borges spent the last season on loan at fellow Championship outfit Bristol City, as Rob Edwards favoured Newcastle United loanee Matt Targett over him. At Ashton Gate, he made 38 league appearances, assisting three times.

this summer on a permanent deal, a new starting left-back will be needed. Perhaps Kim Hellberg may turn to Borges, though, if he has a strong pre-season.

Callum Brittain - £20,000 p/w

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From one full-back to another, Callum Brittain also earns an estimated £20,000 per week in the contract he signed last summer following his departure from Blackburn Rovers.

The 28-year-old more than deserves to be among Boro's top earners, after he was one of the best attacking full-backs in the second tier last season.

Per Fotmob, no right-back completed more dribbles than Brittain, nor had more touches, and he was in the top 5% of players in his position for recoveries and possession won in the final third.

Evidently, he won't be someone that Boro will be looking to replace as they aim to better last season.

Luke Ayling - £20,000 p/w

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Veteran defender Luke Ayling penned a new contract at the Riverside towards the end of last season, which sees him earn an estimated £20,000 for the 2026/27 campaign.

The right-back spent the majority of last season as part of Kim Hellberg's back three. He missed just three league games all year and captained the side on occasion, too.

Such a large deal per week could be seen as a slight overpay for someone who turns 35 in the opening weeks of the upcoming season, but Ayling has spent the better part of eight years now playing for top Championship and Premier League sides, so his experience at the heart of the defence is invaluable.

Delano Burgzorg - £20,000 p/w

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Like Neto Borges, Delano Burgzorg is also on an estimated £20,000 per week and spent time out on loan last season at Bristol City. Unlike the left-back, though, it was Kim Hellberg's decision to allow the Surinamese wideman to leave in January.

The 27-year-old started four times under the Swedish boss and scored a late winner against West Brom before moving to Ashton Gate, but he only made four starts there for the entirety of the second half of the campaign.

He arguably isn't worth being the estimated fourth-highest earner in the Boro side currently, but having him off the bench would go a long way to help eliminate the slow finishes to games that Middlesbrough often fell foul of towards the end of last season.

Sontje Hansen - £20,000 p/w

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The final player said to be earning £20,000 per week at Middlesbrough is Sontje Hansen, but he has yet to show why in his short time at the Riverside.

Boro spent €3.5 million to bring him to the EFL from Eredivisie outfit NEC Nijmegen last summer, and he played just over 500 minutes of senior football in his debut campaign across 19 uneventful appearances.

The 24-year-old will hopefully be one of the players at Middlesbrough who can kick on in their second season under Kim Hellberg, but as it stands, he's largely disappointed.

Morgan Whittaker - £25,000 p/w

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Tied at the top on an estimated £25,000 per week is Morgan Whittaker, who finally began to show that worth in his first full season at the club in 2025/26.

The former Plymouth Argyle man failed to find the back of the net in the second half of the 2024/25 term after arriving for £5 million in January of that season. This past year, though, he was the club's top scorer and joint-top assister with 14 goals and seven assists.

There's still definitely some frustration about him among Boro fans — six of those goals came in consecutive games, and he'd often go on dry spells at times — but if he can showcase some more consistency in his second full season at the club, he could be vital in a promotion push.

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Alfie Jones was Rob Edwards' first signing at Middlesbrough last summer, and was given an estimated £25,000 per week contract, landing him at the top of the Boro wage bill.

Unfortunately, his debut campaign at the Riverside ended after suffering an ankle injury in December, and he had to watch from the stands as his former side, Hull City, won promotion at his new side's expense.

The 28-year-old's national team coach, Jesse Marsch, stated before the World Cup that he felt if the Canadian had stayed fit, Boro would have gotten over the line and would be a Premier League team currently.

Middlesbrough will hope that will be the case this coming season, if their top earner remains injury-free.