Highs and lows for Boro players on international duty
THERE were mixed fortunes for Middlesbrough’s international players over the last fortnight, with players beginning to return to Rockcliffe ahead of Friday’s clash with Southampton after being away with their countries.
Though included in their squad, Marcus Forss was forced to miss Finland’s crucial Euro 2024 qualifier against Wales after picking up a hamstring injury in Boro’s draw with Blackburn Rovers immediately before the Championship pause. Forss’ countrymen would ultimately lose 4-1 to Wales in the semi-final, before Rob Page’s side then lost their qualification final on penalties to Poland on Tuesday.
As well as doubts over Forss for Friday’s trip to the South Coast, Boro are also assessing fellow forward Riley McGree.
In one of the biggest headlines from over the break, the Australian made it through just 16 minutes of Australia’s first World Cup qualifying clash with Lebanon on Thursday before coming off with an injury.
He was therefore forced to miss the second clash with Lebanon on Tuesday and flew back to Teesside early to be assessed. McGree’s Boro team-mates Tom Glover and Sammy Silvera were unused subs in that first clash, but Silvera did get some pitch time on Tuesday as he came off the bench and looked lively for the final eight minutes as the Socceroos followed up their 2-0 win with a 5-0 scoreline the second time around.
There were far better fortunes over the break for Seny Dieng, Paddy McNair, Finn Azaz and Anfernee Dijksteel. Dieng made a rare start for Senegal in their second friendly of the break as they beat Benin 1-0 thanks to Sadio Mane’s penalty. The Boro number one made a crucial contribution too, saving a penalty of his own to secure the win and his fourth consecutive clean sheet for club and country.
McNair, meanwhile, twice captained Northern Ireland as they drew 1-1 with Romania and then beat Scotland 1-0 at Hampden Park. The games were both friendlies after the Green and White Army failed to qualify for this summer’s European Championships and are instead now preparing for the 2026 World Cup qualifiers.
Dijksteel might be struggling for much Boro game time of late, but he did enough to earn a second cap for Suriname during the break after switching his international allegiance to the South American country last year. He played in a friendly in the Netherlands as they came from behind to draw 1-1 with Martinique.
Finally, there was huge pride for Finn Azaz on Tuesday evening as he made his Republic of Ireland debut as a late sub in the 1-0 defeat to Switzerland in Dublin. Boro’s January signing received his first call up after interim national boss John O’Shea spoke with former Manchester United teammate Michael Carrick.
He came on for the final three minutes of the game and came close to scoring an equaliser for his side in an impactful cameo. Revealing his pride after, he told reporters: “I’m just so proud to make my debut for Ireland, for my family, for the country. I had an inkling but I didn’t know. A few lads came on. I was sitting there, I was like ‘please let me get on the pitch’. I’m just buzzing I was able to get on the pitch.”