“A lot of eggs in one basket” – Middlesbrough linked with seven-figure forward: The verdict | OneFootball

This article is part of Football League World’s ‘The Verdict’ series, which provides personal opinions from the FLW writers regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

Middlesbrough have been linked with Venezia striker Thomas Henry as they look to strengthen their forward options ahead of the new Championship season.

That’s according to Gianluca Di Marzio, who have reported that the Italian club value him at around €9 million (£7.6m).

But would he be a good signing for Boro? And is that an acceptable price?

We quizzed our FLW writers…

Declan Harte

This is a big-money move and would be Boro putting a lot of eggs in one basket in their hopes to find a prolific forward.

Henry performed well in Serie A last season with Venezia, scoring nine and assisting two goals.

If everything works out, he could be a great fit for a Wilder side. While he isn’t a high pressing forward for Venezia, he could play that role for Boro.

Henry is also great in the air and his link up play brings other forwards into the attack quite well, making him a good fit for Wilder’s side.

It remains to be seen whether he would be happy to take the step down to the Championship from the Italian top flight, but Boro’s own Premier League ambitions could help persuade him that this is potentially the right move for his career.

Quiz: 20 statements about former Middlesbrough players – Are they true or false?

1 of 20

Juninho signed for Boro for the first time in 1996

True False

Simmey Hannifin-Donaldson

Thomas Henry is not somebody I have seen a lot of, however, his numbers on paper look impressive.

Nine Serie A goals last season, 21 in the Belgian top-flight the campaign prior – these are numbers that could bode well for the Championship.

Particularly given Middlesbrough’s need for a striker, which was bemoaned by Wilder himself last term when he complained that none of his options were performing.

€9 million is a hefty fee to pay for a Championship club, though. But, that being said, Boro aren’t going to be making offers like that unless they’re very confident the player can succeed at the club and in the second tier.

For their sake, if this goes through, let’s hope their scouting department is right.

Billy Mulley

Scoring nine times and providing a further three assists in 33 Serie A outings last time out, Thomas Henry proved to be a bright spark for Venezia in what was a dim campaign.

It is of course not a tally that will alert too many clubs to his situation, however, given the circumstances, he proved to be an important part as to why they did not completely crumble.

Middlesbrough have made some excellent early signings, with Boro striving to compete for automatic promotion when the new season comes around at the end of this month.

Adding a goalscorer will be on the priority list, with Chris Wilder using the loan market last January to try and fill that void.

A permanent forward option would certainly ensure longer-term sustainability, although it is a hefty enough fee for the 27-year-old.

Henry is someone who can help Boro in the here and now, whilst he can grow with the ambitions of the club, something that perhaps justifies the price tag a little more.