Michael Carrick wasn't able to offer any assurances that Middlesbrough can keep Emmanuel Latte Lath this month, but said their goal for the transfer window - to finish it stronger than they started - remains unchanged.

Latte Lath is attracting considerable interest from Premier League clubs, though Boro aren't understood, as yet, to have received any concrete offers for the Ivorian. Already adding ten goals this term to his debut season's 18 strikes, the player's representative has already said he expects something to happen this month.

While Boro are keen to keep hold of the 25-year-old again this month, having turned down a £20 million offer from Ipswich Town in the summer - they are ultimately powerless to control what other clubs do this month. And given the club's financial position, any offers above £20 million would undoubtedly have to be taken seriously - albeit with the caveat that losing him would likely have a huge impact on Boro's promotion chances this season.

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Asked if he was confident Boro could keep him this month, particularly with the business side of a potential sale in mind, Carrick said: “You never know what’s out there and what’s going to come - who’s going to offer what. That’s not just about Manu, that’s any player.

"It’s a transfer window and anyone can offer what they want. So for me to sit here and say I’m confident or I’m not confident [in keeping him], it doesn’t really matter or affect it, because we’ve no idea what might come. We’re happy with the squad we’ve got and we want to keep that squad together as much as we can. We want to be stronger at the end of January, which is obvious.

"How confident I am, it doesn’t matter because we don’t know what’s out there. By the same token, we might be looking at other players and their current clubs aren’t yet aware, then things happen. We’ve just got to be calm. We know what we want it to look like and we’ll make good decisions when we need to."