MIDDLESBROUGH’S defensive resources might be extremely stretched at the moment, but Michael Carrick will not be dipping into the free-agent market unless things take a marked turn for the worse in the next few weeks.

With Darragh Lenihan and Jonny Howson both nursing long-term injuries, Boro lost another two centre-halves this week when Rav van den Berg reported a knee problem in training and George Edmundson sustained an ankle injury during Tuesday’s 3-1 win at Stoke City.

While neither van den Berg nor Edmundson have suffered serious injuries, there is a chance that both could be unavailable for this afternoon’s home game with Derby County. With youngster Harley Hunt only just returning from an injury issue of his own, that would almost certainly mean Carrick having to play full-back Luke Ayling out of position at centre-half, as was the case in the latter stages of the midweek win at the bet365 Stadium.

The situation is far from ideal, with Boro’s defensive options having been reduced in the January window when Matt Clarke was allowed to leave to join tomorrow’s opponents, Derby, but while there are a handful of experienced defenders available in the free-agent market, that is not a route Carrick is currently considering taking.

“Let’s see where we’re at,” said the Boro boss. “I don’t want to get too far ahead just yet when we’re still assessing the boys. A lot can happen in a season and injuries are part of it.

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“We’ve got players who can cover. Luke came on the other night when we were drawing at the time and ended up winning. He’s played there before, and we’ve managed to win games when he’s played there before as well.

“Neto (Borges) has played there before in his career, Jonny, when he gets back, can play there as well. There are all sorts that can come into it. I think we’ve got a decently-balanced squad to cover every eventuality and hopefully we can make the most of it.”

Boro’s attack functioned effectively at Stoke on Tuesday, meaning there is a good chance Carrick will opt against making any attacking changes for today’s game.

Delano Burgzorg has been somewhat unfortunate to find himself out of the starting side given that he was arguably Boro’s best player during much of their losing run, but Marcus Forss made a positive impact down the right-hand side in midweek, with Finn Azaz and Morgan Whittaker also impressing as they swapped between filling the ‘number ten’ role and playing on the left-hand side.