ATLANTA United are the first club to officially firm up their interest in Middlesbrough's Emmanuel Latte Lath with a bid for the striker.

The MLS club are understood to have offered more than £18m, with the deal on the table potentially worth around £20m including add-ons.

Despite plenty of speculation linking the striker with a move away from the Riverside in the January transfer window, Atlanta's bid is the first concrete offer Boro have received this month.

It's understood there are several clubs in the Premier League and overseas closely monitoring Latte Lath's situation, so there's a chance Atlanta's offer could trigger further bids for the striker.

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Ipswich Town, who failed in their late summer move for Latte Lath, want to sign a striker this month, while West Ham United, who have also been strongly linked, are also in the market for a new frontman after Niclas Fullkrug was ruled out for three months with a hamstring injury.

Boro have not yet officially responded to Atlanta's offer and are instead likely to see what impact it has on the market and whether it sparks further bids. Latte Lath is under contract at Boro until the summer of 2027, with the option of a further year.

The move from Atlanta - which would be an MLS transfer record - is something of a surprise, given the expectation that it would be Premier League clubs leading the race for Latte Lath.

Boro head coach Michael Carrick last week admitted he couldn't guarantee Latte Lath would still be a Boro player at the end of the month, but reiterated the club's desire to end the window with a "stronger" squad.