Latest on Middlesbrough's move for Morgan Whittaker - plus Mark Travers update
MIDDLESBROUGH are interested in a January deal for Morgan Whittaker, and have held talks with Plymouth Argyle over the winger.
Boro are understood to be discussing an initial bid of around £5m for the 24-year-old, who is contracted to Plymouth until the summer of 2027, with additional add-ons included in the deal.
The Teessiders hold a strong interest in Whittaker, who was the subject of a failed bid from Serie A side Lazio 12 months ago.
Burnley are known to have had an offer turned down this month, but Plymouth are expected to sell Whittaker at some stage ahead of the February 3 transfer deadline in order to fund a rebuild of the squad that is currently sitting at the foot of the Championship table.
The Pilgrims reportedly value Whittaker at around £10m, and will be reluctant to accept much less as they are due a hefty sell-on clause to Swansea City that formed part of the £1m deal that took the former Derby County trainee to Devon in the summer of 2023.
Whittaker has spent most of his career playing as a right-winger, although he has also played as a central striker on occasion, with his attacking versatility one of the key reasons why Boro are so interested in him this month.
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The Teessiders’ interest is completely unrelated to Ben Doak’s situation, with a move for Whittaker set to be unaffected by whatever happens in terms of Doak’s potential recall to Liverpool.
Whittaker is a long-term Boro target, whose likely availability this month has sparked the ongoing talks. Boro lost a right-winger a couple of weeks ago when Isaiah Jones completed a permanent transfer to Luton Town and are unlikely to be able to call on Doak’s services beyond the end of the season no matter what league they find themselves playing in next season.
Boro are also closing in on a loan deal for Bournemouth goalkeeper Mark Travers, who is set to join on a temporary basis for the remainder of the campaign.
Sol Brynn remains another couple of months away from a return from injury, and while Seny Dieng returned to the squad at the weekend after an injury lay-off of his own, the fact he was only on the bench at Portsmouth suggests there are major question marks over his own long-term future.
Tom Glover has failed to impress during his stint in the starting line-up, leading Boro to turn to the transfer market in an attempt to bolster their goalkeeping resources for the second half of the season.
Travers is currently second-choice at Bournemouth behind Kepa Arrizabalaga, and was an unused substitute in the Cherries’ 4-1 win at Newcastle United at the weekend.
He started Bournemouth’s draw at Chelsea earlier this month because Kepa was ineligible, but is set to leave the Vitality Stadium in order to join Boro for the final three-and-a-half months of the season.
