Why Middlesbrough cashed in on Rav van den Berg and Finn Azaz — Kieran Scott has revealed it | OneFootball

Middlesbrough chief Kieran Scott has opened up on the decision to sanction big-money sales for both Rav van den Berg and Finn Azaz

Middlesbrough conducted something of a summer squad following last season's failure to reach the Championship play-offs and the consequential sacking of Michael Carrick, with the Teessiders sanctioning various incomings and outgoings under Rob Edwards.

Courtesy of a positive summer transfer window including numerous exciting arrivals towards the latter stages and a blistering start to the 2025/26 Championship campaign, which has seen Middlesbrough win each of their opening four encounters to ascend to the top of the league table, there is overwhelming positivity and harmony around the Riverside Stadium at this moment in time.

The acquisitions of Callum Brittain, Alfie Jones, Sverre Nypan, and, perhaps most notably of all, David Strelec, have left the Boro faithful particularly excited, with supporters pleased to see that assets sold during the summer have been replaced.

Middlesbrough cashed in on Josh Coburn, who joined Millwall on a permanent basis, before sanctioning sales for both Rav van den Berg and Finn Azaz later on in the window.

21-year-old defender van den Berg joined Bundesliga outfit Cologne in a deal worth up to £11.2 million, whereas Azaz — Middlesbrough's star performer last term with a hugely-impressive outlay of 12 goals and assists in the Championship — left for divisional rivals Southampton after an initial £12 million fee was agreed between the two clubs with just days to spare of the window.

And now, Middlesbrough head of football, Kieran Scott, has revealed why the club decided to sell both van den Berg and how the two players were feeling ahead of their respective departures from the North East.

Kieran Scott drops "lost his way" reveal on Rav van den Berg ahead of Cologne transfer

Van den Berg's debut campaign at Middlesbrough was a roaring success following his move from Dutch side PEC Zwolle, although, it must be said, he struggled somewhat during 2024/25.

Boro supporters may have been scratching their heads as to why that proved the case, of course, and Scott has now revealed that, in his opinion, the Dutchman was "disengaged" and had "lost his way" on Teesside.

Scott believes that the move represented the best outcome for all parties, with Boro having considerably bolstered their defensive options by acquiring Jones and impressive 23-year-old Adilson Malanda, who will link up with Edwards' squad in January.

Speaking to BBC Tees, Scott explained: "I’ll be careful what I say because Rav is just a young lad, and he is a really good player. But he just looked a bit disengaged with it all, to be honest.

"There was an opportunity that came up for him and it just felt like it was the right thing for all parties.

"There is no knocking him as a player - he’s got the world at his feet when he wants to. But he just lost his way and I think the change was the right thing for everybody.

"We’re getting Adilson in January and then, to be fair, I think Alfie Jones has filled that void no problem whatsoever.

"Adilson will add to that. We’ve got five brilliant centre-backs as it is, and then Adilson will come over and help complement it. So we’ll be all right.

"But, as I say, that’s no disrespect to Rav; he’s a really good player and we wish him all the best."

Kieran Scott reveals why Middlesbrough sold Finn Azaz to Southampton — star pushed for move

Scott also discussed the sale of Azaz to Southampton, which went down as contentious business among supporters considering the playmaker's output on Teesside - though he was a somewhat divisive figure with fans - and the late stage in which he was sold.

Scott revealed how Azaz was conscious of his mixed relationship with Middlesbrough supporters and suggested that it could have been "part of his reasoning" for moving on, with the ex-Newport County and Plymouth Argle starlet having "made it clear where he stood" before leaving the club.

He did, however, note that Azaz's intentions to leave were different to those displayed by van den Berg, which provokes curiosity about the way the Dutchman navigated his move to Germany.

Scott said: "It’s strange (the reception Azaz got from certain supporters). Finn actually alluded to that.

"I think he felt that people didn’t like him. He had some fans, but there were others who didn’t like him.

"He did express that.

"It’s strange when a player has those kinds of numbers and that’s how people feel. Listen, everyone is entitled to their views; you pay your money and you see what you see and feel what you feel at the end of the day.

"If that’s how you feel and you express it, it is what it is. But with Finn, I think he felt that a bit, and I think that might have been a part of his reasoning for wanting to move on.

"As I say, we’re all big boys and we just have to get on with it. He goes on to there and we wish him well — apart from when he plays against us — and we’ve then used the money to bring other players in. That’s football and we all move on."

Unsurprisingly, Scott described how it was a "difficult decision" to part ways with Azaz and, while the club were keen to retain the attacking midfielder's services, the opportunity to cash in on a player who wanted out and reinvest those funds into deals for the aforementioned Strelec — tipped to have a huge impact for Middlesbrough this term — alongside Kaly Sene ultimately made "perfect sense".

He continued: "It’s always a difficult decision to let someone who has produced those kinds of numbers go, to be fair to him.

"Not in the same sort of way as Rav, but Finn had also made it clear where he stood. No problem with that, we’re all men, we’re all big boys.

"But he made it really clear what he wanted to do.

"Southampton in the end got to a point where we felt it was doable. We certainly weren’t pushing Finn away and we would have kept Finn and worked with him.

"But it was made obvious what he wanted to do.