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FLW's Boro Fan Pundit weighs up whether the club should bring Christian Benteke to the Riverside in January

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

Middlesbrough may sit in the automatic promotion places of the Championship table, but their striker department has some concerns surrounding it, with goals proving hard to come by through the middle.

Tommy Conway was signed by Boro from Bristol City for a reported £4.5 million last year, and whilst he found the back of the net 13 times in his first season on Teesside, he has mustered just two Championship goals from his 18 appearances so far in 2025-26.

And after being pursued for much of 2025, Slovakian attacker David Strelec landed at the Riverside Stadium for an initial £6.5 million, but he has had a slow start too, contributing a solitary goal from 11 outings.

It's unfair to put too much blame onto Strelec though, given the Slovakian has battled a foot problem that required him to see a specialist in London, but putting his and Conway's contributions together, three goals from their two main strikers is obviously not great at all.

And if you add Delano Burgzorg's one goal as well, with the Dutchman sometimes featuring up-front this season as a substitute as well as out wide, then it is quite a worrying trend for new boss Kim Hellberg to deal with - but could an experienced ex-Premier League striker who is set to become a free agent in January potentially help solve their issues?

Christian Benteke to become a free agent in January - He'd offer something "very, very different" at Middlesbrough

Former Aston Villa, Liverpool and Crystal Palace striker Christian Benteke has just announced his departure from MLS outfit D.C. United after three years, having scored 49 goals in 100 appearances.

Most notably, he won the 2024 MLS Golden Boot, finding the back of the net 23 times in just 30 matches, despite being in his mid-30's.

Now 35 years old, Benteke wasn't as prolific in his final year in USA's capital, with nine goals in 25 league matches, but he's set to become an option for many clubs in need of a striker when the mid-season transfer window opens.

Seeing as though Boro's strikers are failing to score consistently - at least for the moment - FLW's Middlesbrough Fan Pundit, Liam Day, revealed his thoughts on whether the club should try and sign Benteke in January.

"It's certainly an interesting option," Day told FLW.

"He'd offer us something very, very different to what we have - but he definitely feels like a very short-term option."

During 280 Premier League appearances for Villa, Liverpool and Palace, Benteke bagged 86 goals and managed 22 assists - albeit they were at the peak of his powers and not when he was coming to the end of his career.

But Day doesn't think the club's Head of Football, Kieran Scott, will be thinking about bringing him in, due to not fitting the profile of the type of player he likes.

"I wouldn’t be too against it, because the physical presence up front we do need, and he’s very experienced obviously, but the MLS isn’t the greatest quality in terms of players," Liam added.

"He is proven in England somewhat, so that may welcome it a bit but right now, his wages, he probably wants a decent wage - I don’t see Kieran Scott going for it.

"January’s only a month away now, I think we’ll wait, he’ll have options. We’ve got three strikers on the books, so I'm not even sure if a striker is going to be a priority position.

"It probably should be, but I don’t really know what Kim Hellberg will want to play. If he plays a 4-4-2, or if he’s going to stick to the one up front but you know, I don’t see Benteke coming to Middlesbrough at all," Day concluded.

Middlesbrough could probably do better than Christian Benteke in January

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Ultimately, with Middlesbrough currently sitting in second place in the Championship - albeit just two points clear of third - a mid-season overhaul up front feels unlikely, even with the lack of goals.

You could argue that the majority of Boro fans have the same opinion as Day regarding any potential move for Benteke. It would definitely be interesting, but it’s perhaps not what the club needs, or Hellberg wants.

Based on his time in Sweden, Hellberg prefers a fluid tactical system and it requires a lot of movement, and that may not suit Benteke having just turned 35 years of age.

Of course though, every club needs a Plan B when things are not working, and in that respect, Benteke could be a useful option for probably any Championship club, but given his advancing years, the Belgian may not figure on Boro's transfer radar.