Middlesbrough player exit now feels inevitable after manager reveal: View | OneFootball

It has been a frustrating season for Middlesbrough in the Championship.

After losing to Coventry City in the play-off semi-finals last season, Boro made a slow start to the campaign, failing to win any of their first seven league games.

Michael Carrick's side have improved significantly since then, but inconsistency has plagued them throughout the season, and that has proven costly in their pursuit of another top six finish.

Boro are finishing the season strongly, but despite an excellent performance, their nine-game unbeaten run came to an end as they were beaten 4-3 by Leeds United at the Riverside Stadium on Monday night.

The defeat means that Boro can no longer make the play-offs this season, as they currently sit ninth in the table, nine points from the top six with just two games remaining.

With nothing left to play for this campaign, Carrick's attention will be turning to the summer transfer window, and there is likely to be a number of incomings and outgoings at the club over the coming months.

One player facing an uncertain future is defender Hayden Coulson, who is currently on loan at League One side Blackpool.

Coulson has scored one goal and provided one assist in 17 appearances in all competitions since joining the Seasiders in January, and head coach Neil Critchley suggested he is keen to sign him permanently this summer.

"[The loanees] have made a huge difference," Critchley told the Blackpool Gazette. "Hayden has been fantastic.

"That’s the discussions we’ve been having [can they sign them permanently in the summer], we’re always planning ahead.

"With loan players, their parent clubs have something to say, and when they play well, you get interest from elsewhere. They’re not our players so it’s out of our hands.

"They’ve all contributed and shown their value to the club. They’ve also shown what good people they are and how much they’ve enjoyed playing here, so it’s definitely something we will look at when the season ends."

Hayden Coulson looks set for permanent Middlesbrough exit this summer

Coulson came through the Boro academy, and after loan spells at St Mirren and Cambridge United, he was handed an opportunity in the first team by Jonathan Woodgate in 2019.

The 25-year-old scored one goal and registered two assists in 30 appearances in all competitions during the 2019-20 season as Boro narrowly avoided relegation from the Championship, but his minutes became limited after Neil Warnock replaced Woodgate in June 2020.

After falling out of favour at Boro, Coulson has had loan spells with Ipswich Town, Peterborough United and Aberdeen in recent years.

Coulson put pen-to-paper on a new two-year contract at the Riverside Stadium after returning from Pittodrie in the summer, and with Boro short on options at left-back, he started the club's opening three games of the season in all competitions.

However, after a tough afternoon in the 3-0 defeat at Coventry City in August, Coulson was dropped, and Carrick even opted to play midfielder Lewis O'Brien ahead of him at left-back.

The arrivals of Lukas Engel and Alex Bangura towards the end of the summer transfer window pushed Coulson further down the pecking order, and he was frequently left out of the matchday squad altogether, with his only other appearance coming as a late substitute against Aston Villa in the FA Cup in January.

Engel and Bangura have both impressed for Boro this season, so it is difficult to see Coulson receiving many minutes next term, and it remains to be seen whether Carrick will attempt to sign Leicester City loanee Luke Thomas permanently this summer.

Despite his strong performances during his loan spell at Blackpool, it seems unlikely that Coulson will be able to force his way into Carrick's plans, but he has clearly made a big impact on Critchley, and a full-time move to Bloomfield Road could be the perfect solution for all parties.

According to Teesside Live, Boro would likely be open to selling Coulson to Blackpool this summer, and his permanent exit looks inevitable, even if a deal cannot be agreed with the Seasiders.