£2.75m Middlesbrough transfer looked doomed but it returned serious money: View | OneFootball

Middlesbrough enjoyed a strong 2022/23 Championship campaign.

Under the guidance of Michael Carrick, for the most part, Boro climbed the Championship table in impressive fashion and looked to earn promotion to the Premier League last season. The side won 22 of their 46 league games, and finished fourth in the table, earning themselves a place in the Championship play-offs.

Despite falling short in the semi-final, Middlesbrough were able to be proud of their efforts over the course of the season as they scored the second most goals in the division, behind only the Champions, Burnley.

One of the biggest reasons for Boro's success last season was the goalscoring form of Chuba Akpom, but his time at Middlesbrough was not always full of success.

The striker arrived at the Riverside Stadium in September 2020 for a fee worth £2.75m, but the transfer quickly seemed worthless as Akpom struggled for form.

After progressing through Arsenal's youth system as a teenager, his career in English football became rather stale, so when he returned to England to sign for Boro in 2020, it appeared to be his last chance of real success in this country.

His first season with the club saw him score just five Championship goals in 38 appearances and many questions were asked around the fee that was paid to bring him into the side.

Following his first season, he departed on loan to PAOK in Greece, after failing to really kick on at the Riverside Stadium. Akpom scored 11 goals for the Greek side throughout the 2021/22 season as he looked to rejuvenate his career.

This form saw him return to the Middlesbrough starting eleven ahead of the 2022/23 Championship season, and he quickly found his shooting boots to finally make that fee seem worth it.

Chuba Akpom's impressive 2022/23 campaign

The former Arsenal man really came alive for Middlesbrough last season after a disappointing start to his spell, and he soon became a fan favourite.

Early in the season, Akpom scored twice against Sheffield United, but these would be his only league goals for the first two months of the season, as he spent several weeks on the sidelines.

Following his return in October, Carrick was appointed Middlesbrough manager, and Akpom became a goalscoring machine. He would end the campaign with a whopping 28 league goals in just 35 starts, becoming a hero at the Riverside Stadium.

Whether he was up front or behind the striker, the goals just kept flowing for Akpom, who had really made a statement over the course of the season. He was worth every single penny spent on him, despite initial worry.

Not only did Akpom score regular goals for Boro and become their most important player, he even made them a huge profit, when Dutch giants Ajax came calling at the end of the season.

The two clubs agreed a deal worth £12m for the striker, meaning Middlesbrough earned a profit just shy of £10 million.

All in all, that £2.75 million fee turned out to be a stroke of genius for Middlesbrough as they saw the best in Akpom before offloading him for a huge profit, which allowed them to build their squad ahead of this season.