Middlesbrough FC 2026-27 season preview: Boro motivated for re-run following Wembley woe
MIDDLESBROUGH's last promotion campaign was born from the pits of Wembley despair.
In May 2015, Boro - backed by a sea of red in the west end of the national stadium - were humbled by Norwich City in a Championship play-off final. The silver lining arrived the following spring.
After the aforesaid game against the Canaries, then Boro captain Grant Leadbitter stood alone and deliberately made himself watch the victors lift the winners’ trophy.
It served as motivational fuel for the events of 2015-16 when the Teessiders returned to the Promised Land.
Boro's players and supporters - housed in the same part of HA9 - were similarly shattered at the end of their latest Wembley appearance versus Hull City in May.
Sol Brynn, whose mistake gifted a dramatic stoppage-time victory to the Tigers, was inconsolable on the turf, while Hayden Hackney struggled to hold back the tears in his final outing for his boyhood club.
There was no iconic image in the mould of Leadbitter. Yet in the bowels of the stadium, something significant transpired.
Their best player on the day - and arguably most important going forward— in Aidan Morris chose not to hide away when others would. He spoke defiantly on the very day that he learned he had missed out on World Cup selection with the USA.
Fronting up, the midfielder said: "That's life as a footballer. It's not going to be perfect and you can always come back from situations and remember how the hurt made you feel."
Drawing strength from adversity is what sets teams and individuals apart. It's also in Boro's DNA, think their feted class of 1986 for instance.
Four decades on from the most remarkable campaign in the club's history in 1986-87, another comeback story would be fitting for many.
For Leadbitter, hopefully read Morris. Leadbitter's axis with Adam Clayton was pivotal to Boro going all the way in 15-16 and Morris' partnership with good friend and international team-mate Sebastian Berhalter in the middle of the park is likely to be seminal to the club's quest in 2026-27 with Hackney now with Everton.
In terms of outlay, Berhalter's move was dwarfed by Boro's signing of Tottenham Hotspur's Will Lankshear for an initial £10m.
That the club landed a player who started all five games for the US in the World Cup for a down-payment of £900,000 - rising to £1.5m—looks very shrewd business indeed. He also used to play with Morris at Columbus Crew.
By common consent, Morris and Hackney were the best central midfield 'two' in the second tier last term. If Morris and Berhalter click, it would take a serious combination to better their partnership in 26-27.
Creating chances certainly wasn't the problem for Boro last term. Scoring them definitely was and explained why they choked badly in the automatic promotion stakes.
The metrics were crazy. In terms of expected goals and possession stats, Kim Hellberg's side were out on their own. But not in the column that mattered. In seven home games in the spring for instance, they mustered an incredible 164 shots on goal, but scored a paltry four times.
Lankshear, Boro's most high-profile forward signing at this level since Britt Assombalonga arrived for a fair old eight-figure fee in 2017, has been brought into do something about that.
That Spurs have placed a 'matching rights' clause into the Lankshear deal - meaning they hold the right to match any future bids submitted - points to how highly they regard him.
The 21-year-old was one of the stand-out young strikers in the division last season during a fine loan spell at Oxford. His physicality, movement and ability to lead the line earned many admirers.
Notching 12 goals for a bottom-three side remained the biggest tick, backed up by his prolific record in development leagues. Lankshear provides the bonafide ‘number nine’ option that Boro lacked in 25-26.
With hard running outlets either side of Lankshear in fellow newcomer Kyle Joseph and Tommy Conway and a slightly deeper forward in David Strelec—there are also Morgan Whittaker, Leo Castledine and Jeremy Sarmiento to factor in —Boro have no excuses on the attacking front.
At the back, Boro must fill the hole left by Dael Fry - Spurs' defender Ashley Phillips is a target - and require another option on the left to replace Matt Targett.
Another senior goalkeeper is set to fight it out with Brynn and should all those gaps be filled, then Hellberg's side, on paper, look to be strong as any outside of relegated trio West Ham, Wolves and Burnley and another club backed by sizeable parachute payments in Southampton.
Boro never do things the easy way, historically. It explains why their initial reaction to a dark spring which saw them nosedive from being not just automatic promotion but title candidates to the play-offs will be key. Unquestionably, in terms of fan mood.
Boro still have plenty going for them. Should they falter again, ridicule from across the Championship is sure to follow. And not just at St Mary's.