Middlesbrough to beat Southampton & Wolves to Spurs' Will Lankshear | OneFootball

Middlesbrough are closing in on a deal to sign Tottenham striker Will Lankshear on a permanent basis.

Middlesbrough had a hectic previous season, which ultimately ended in disappointment as they lost the play-off final to Hull City.

Kim Hellberg was named as Rob Edwards’ successor after the latter had left for Wolves, much to the anger of the Boro support. The Swede did a fantastic job following his appointment, with Boro playing some excellent football to finish in the play-off places.

Of course, that’s when the ‘Spygate’ scandal became a talking point, and whilst Boro were given a place in the final, they were beaten at Wembley in heartbreaking fashion.

Missing out on promotion was tough for Boro to take, as many felt it could’ve been very different had the club signed a clinical striker in January, as Hellberg’s side would regularly create chances, but they lacked that cutting edge.

Middlesbrough set to win transfer battle for Tottenham’s Will Lankshear

Therefore, bringing in a new number nine was always going to be a priority for Middlesbrough in this window, and it appears they are landing a key target.

That’s after journalist Alasdair Gold revealed that Boro are in ‘advanced talks’ to sign Will Lankshear from Tottenham.

He explained that Sporting CP, Wolves and Southampton had seen offers, which could’ve exceeded £10m, rejected, as Spurs weighed up what to do with the academy graduate.

However, Boro have now met the asking price the Londoners set, with Lankshear seemingly close to sealing a permanent switch to the Riverside Stadium.

That will be seen as a real coup for Boro, as Lankshear enjoyed a very impressive individual season with Oxford at this level last time out.

The 21-year-old scored 11 goals in 44 games for the U’s, and he was a great focal point for the team with his physicality that enabled him to bring others into the game, with that form putting him on the radar of several clubs going into the window.

Will Lankshear is a statement signing for Middlesbrough

Following on from that, this looks like a shrewd bit of business by Boro, who are in desperate need of a quality Championship striker, as it did cost them last season.

Lankshear still has areas of his game that he must improve, which is normal for someone of his age, but he has all the attributes that Boro would want from their main man up top.

The England youth international is clever with his movement, he can score different types of goals, and he has a good physical profile.

At this stage of his career, Lankshear needs to be playing regularly, and that is obviously not going to happen at Spurs, so a move makes sense for him as well, particularly to a side like Boro, who play a brand of football that any forward would enjoy.

With Hayden Hackney having departed, and Dael Fry also moving on, it has been a tough window so far for Middlesbrough, even with the windfall they are due to receive from Morgan Rogers’ transfer to Chelsea from Aston Villa.

So, they will still need further incomings, and it’s a case of adding real quality to help Hellberg as he looks to build a team that can win promotion, but Lankshear is a fantastic start, and he could solve what was a major problem for Middlesbrough last season.