Boro blow as they look destined to lose Ayala
central midfield - but Chalobah and a team of other players will be doing their best to sway the manager’s selection thinking.
Those pushing strongly for recognition will include Liverpool loan keeper Kamil Grabara, who is now fully recovered from the head injury suffered at Hull, striker Steve Mounie had eight goals in 14 league appearances before the lockdown and Juninho Bacuna was in eye-catching midfield form.
Add to those Jon Gorenc Stankovic, Alex Pritchard vying for the No.10 slot, Andy King pushing to start following the extension of his loan contract from Leicester City and further fringe players Elias Kachunga, Matty Daly, Jaden Brown and Demeaco Duhaney and the boss has some decisions to make.
And that’s with a new-look 20-strong matchday squad because of Covid-19 and the fact he can use five substitutes instead of just three (five from nine rather than three from seven).
Jonas Lossl; Danny Simpson, Richard Stearman, Christopher Schindler, Harry Toffolo; Jonathan Hogg, Lewis O’Brien; Chris Willock, Emile Smith Rowe, Karlan Grant; Fraizer Campbell.
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14 37 47 41 16 38 50 41 18 49 63 41 18 44 54 39 22 43 71 35 19 42 62 34
ONE of Huddersfield Town’s relegation rivals Middlesbrough have been dealt a huge blow with the news key defender Daniel Ayala has almost certainly played his last game for the club.
The Spanish defender is out of contract on June 30 and it seems likely he will not play when the Championship resumes this weekend.
Clubs have the option of offering out-of-contract players short-term deals to cover them for the remainder of the season, but players retain the right to turn these offers down.
The centre-back is the latest highprofile player not to return to Championship action, with another struggling side Charlton Athletic’s
Lyle Taylor also declining a short-term deal.
Ayala will not take part in Boro’s two scheduled games before his contract officially expires, having not represented the club since January 1 due to injury.
The defender had reported back to training with the rest of the Boro squad following lockdown three weeks ago, but is understood to have rejected a new contract.
Middlesbrough are well-known to be cutting their cloth after their Premier League parachute payments expired, meaning they cannot offer Ayala the sort of deal he signed in 2016.
Leeds United and Newcastle United have been linked with a move for the former Liverpool man on a free transfer.
Boro have flirted with relegation this season and find themselves just two points above the drop zone - one below Town - with nine games to go.
Losing a key player like Ayala, who has been with the club since 2014, will be a big blow in their battle to avoid the drop. 18+, UK only. New customers only. No deposit required. Get a £5 free bet on Sport or Virtual Sport when you register an account with thepools.com today. 7 day expiry on free bet. Offer can’t be combined with another promotion.
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