Middlesbrough are pursuing a deal to try and sign Glen Kamara this month - and the midfielder could provide Boro with exactly what they need this season.

Kamara is available this month after being ostracised at Rennes, with his move to the Ligue 1 side from Leeds United in the summer not working out. The former Rangers title-winner has not started a league game since mid-November having fallen out of favour with their new manager.

A €10 million signing for the French side, he is a sizeable earner and any deal to bring him to the Riverside would have to see the 29-year-old either take a pay cut, or have the French side subsidise a portion of his salary. While they have alternative midfield targets, Boro clearly feel a deal is do-able this month.

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The link to Kamara comes just days after Boro’s latest Championship defeat. A 2-1 defeat at Portsmouth saw Michael Carrick’s side fall out of the top six and highlighted why a player like Kamara could prove important.

As Carrick conceded himself after, too often this season Boro have let slip positive positions in matches. In the top half of the division, only Norwich have lost more points from winning positions this term. Boro have just felt a bit soft-centred this season, both in terms of experience to manage situations in games, and also with their bite in midfield, particularly in the last two months with Aidan Morris and Jonny Howson absent through injury.

That’s exactly why Boro are interested in bringing Kamara in this month - and they’ve already been told he will provide both of the above for them if they do manage to negotiate a fair deal for the Finland international.

Speaking about his partnership with Ethan Ampadu in the Leeds midfield last term, EFL expert Jobi McAnuff said: “I think particularly tonight in terms of his energy, his aggressiveness and breaking things up and getting them playing again [he showed his importance].

“I feel like they have a real nice blend in there. Physicality is something you have to have at this level week in, week out, and he certainly has brought that.”

While that combative nature will be of obvious benefit to Boro’s midfield if they can push a deal through, his quality in possession shouldn’t be underestimated either - with that a key attribute for any midfielder in a Carrick team. Last term he had the fourth-best pass completion rate in the Championship, and was highly ranked among short, medium and long-range passes.

On that side of his game, having been schooled in the Arsenal academy, Daniel Farke said of Kamara: “He's definitely a player that gives us lots of quality on the ball and his decision-making, which pass to make. He can dictate the rhythm of the game.”

Meanwhile, Farke’s comments on the midfielder will assure Boro of the character of the player - with his ability to gel with the squad off the pitch as important as what he can do off it.

Leeds boss Farke said of him last season: "I think in general we have a really young squad and many young players when you look at our average age in the starting line-up. It's important to have some experienced players like Glen.

“We don't have to speak about his CV. He's played for a big club in Rangers where there's lots of pressure to win more or less every game in the league. He's a proven Finland international with more than 50 caps already, he was involved in many battles.

“He's definitely on a good path and for the others, he's a top team-mate and top lad. He's pretty much involved in each and every joke the lads have in the dressing room. He's a great guy to have around and we're happy to have him."

While there are no guarantees at this stage with competition for his signature and a complicated deal to be negotiated, it’s easy to see why Boro are targeting Kamara this month.