The Chuba Akpom situation at Middlesbrough that still must surprise many fans | OneFootball

Chuba Akpom's golden boot form came out of nowhere at Middlesbrough.

Chuba Akpom’s impressive 28-goal Championship campaign for Middlesbrough still surprises supporters to this day.

The forward initially joined Boro from Greek side PAOK in the 2020 summer transfer window, bringing him back to English football after initially coming through the Arsenal academy system.

He contributed eight goals and two assists in his last season in Greece, helping his team finish second in the table.

It was hoped that he could have a similar impact at the Riverside, but he struggled for goals in Neil Warnock's side, which led to him going back on loan to PAOK in 2021.

However, when he returned in 2022, he went on to score 28 times to power the Teesside outfit to a fourth place finish in the Championship.

Chuba Akpom’s rise to golden boot success at Middlesbrough

Akpom’s start to life at Middlesbrough showed plenty of promise, with the forward bagging two goals in his first two games, scoring against QPR and Barnsley.

But he didn’t score again until December 2020, failing to contribute a goal or assist in 13 league appearances.

The now 29-year-old scored just two more between then and the end of the campaign, with Boro missing out on a play-off place by 13 points with a 10th place finish.

Crucially, however, Warnock had deployed Akpom predominantly as a centre-forward during his debut campaign at the Riverside Stadium, which Boro would soon come to learn was not how they were going to get the brilliant best out of him in a red and white shirt.

Akpom had a solid year out on loan with PAOK during the 2021/22 campaign, registering seven goals and three assists in 34 appearances in the Greek Super League, with a total return of 11 goals in 52 appearances in all competitions.

However, his days looked numbered upon his return to Middlesbrough in 2022, with Wilder opting to move him to the U21 squad during pre-season, with the club having spent sizeable fees to bring in strikers Marcus Forss and Matthew Hoppe, as well as completing a loan deal for Fulham's Rodrigo Muniz.

So, it came as especially surprising when he started the opening day of the new campaign for Boro, having been training away from the first-team squad whilst waiting for the green light to secure a move away from the club.

He featured for 62 minutes in a 1-1 draw against West Brom before being substituted, as Wilder was already having to contend with an injury crisis in his forward ranks.

Akpom managed four goals from nine appearances from the opening 17 games of that season before Wilder was replaced by Michael Carrick as manager in October, following an underwhelming run of form.

The attacker immediately hit the ground running under his new coach, scoring in each of his first four appearances under the former England international, as Carrick ingeniously switched him from a centre-forward role to an attacking midfield one, operating just behind the lone striker.

This piece of coaching and man-management brilliance from Carrick proved to be the sliding door moment for one of the greatest individual seasons from a Middlesbrough player in many, many years.

A total of 28 goals from 38 regular league appearances led to the Teesside outfit earning a play-off place, with Akpom winning the golden boot ahead of players like Viktor Gyokeres, Carlton Morris and Joel Piroe.

Boro ultimately fell short to Coventry City in the play-off semi-finals, but without Akpom's remarkable rise from outcast to standout, Middlesbrough may never have got as close to sealing a Premier League return as they did that year.

Middlesbrough’s major Chuba Akpom windfall

While Middlesbrough ultimately failed to earn promotion to the Premier League despite Akpom’s remarkably surprising strong form, it was enough for him to earn a major move to Dutch giants Ajax.

It was reported in the summer of 2023 that Boro agreed a deal with the Eredivisie side worth £12.2 million for the forward, and he went with all the best wishes of the Teesside faithful who were now ever grateful to him for the unforgettable season he gave them.

This was a major windfall, and far more than anyone would’ve predicted he’d be sold for 12 months prior, especially given Wilder had him training with the youth side.

It didn’t quite work out for Akpom in Amsterdam, with the club enduring one of their worst seasons in modern memory in his first year.

Ajax recovered to a fifth place finish, with the former Boro player contributing 11 goals from 25 league appearances, as well as adding a further four goals in other competitions to take his total tally to 15 in his debut season in the Dutch capital.

Meanwhile, nobody in Carrick’s side was able to replicate Akpom’s exploits in front of goal and the team ultimately fell out of the top six in the Championship, with eighth and 10th-placed finishes to follow before the Manchester United and England legend was relieved of his duties as Boro boss at the conclusion of the 24/25 season.

Middlesbrough perhaps would’ve benefitted from him staying at the Riverside for another year, even if there was a risk of him leaving as a free agent, but no Middlesbrough fan denied the fact he'd earned the right to test himself at a top European club.

Middlesbrough fans will always be surprised about where his golden boot form came from during the 2022/23 season, and they'll certainly never forget the season he gave them wearing the number 29 shirt.