Chris Wilder identifies positive aspect of Middlesbrough man’s upcoming absence | OneFootball

Riley McGree was expected to make his Middlesbrough debut on Monday against Blackburn, but will now miss out after the Australian was called up to international duty.

Chris Wilder has said he won’t stand in the way of the Australian after McGree’s call up with Australia playing two World Cup Qualifiers later next week, believing there can be benefits to his absence.

It means McGree will have to wait for his debut for Boro but Wilder has admitted it might not be the worst thing for the player or the club.

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Australia have two World Cup qualifiers coming up, starting on Friday evening against Vietnam and that means instead of travelling to Lancashire with Boro, McGree will instead be flying back to his home country.

Wilder has preferred to see the positives though as he told Teeside Live: “I think there’s a lot of positives to doing that, though there are a couple of cons too.

“The travelling and you’re always wanting them to come back healthy so you always have to be a bit fingers crossed and closing your eyes and hoping for the best.

“Hopefully with Riley though, he can come back healthy after a couple of games under his belt that will hopefully benefit him too having not played now since December 18.”

Middlesbrough take on Blackburn on Monday knowing a win will see them move into the top six ahead of Huddersfield, who currently occupy that final play-off spot.

The Verdict

It’s obviously a blow for McGree to miss out but while Boro are performing and creating chances, missing out on him for another week may not be the worst scenario.

Wilder also points out the lack of games for McGree. He’s guaranteed minutes for Australia and will be a good chance for him to gain some match fitness ahead of his return to Teeside after the World Cup Qualifiers.

As a result, this could prove a boost to ‘Boro’s top six this season, providing he does return still fit and available.