Opinion: Why 23-year-old was right to join Middlesbrough despite Charlie Nicholas’ Celtic comments | OneFootball

Pundit Charlie Nicholas recently branded Riley McGree for being ‘greedy’ after rejecting a move to former Scottish Premiership champions in favour of Championship outfit Middlesbrough, as he spoke to the Daily Express (via The National).

The 23-year-old was thought to be on the verge of a move to Glasgow following Birmingham City’s refusal to follow up his loan deal with a permanent bid – but a late dash from Boro secured his future at the Riverside Stadium after previously looking as though he would return to Charlotte for their new MLS season.

Ryan Christie faced similar fury when he left Celtic Park for AFC Bournemouth last summer, being the subject of intense criticism from various pundits north of the border and also being accused of being greedy like McGree has.

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But that probably wasn’t Christie’s main reason for going.

Quite frankly, the 26-year-old had hit his ceiling in the Scottish top tier, performing extremely well and consistently for the Bhoys and league rivals Aberdeen over several seasons – and the former were perhaps lucky not to lose him following the 2019/20 campaign after seeing him record 25 goal contributions in 24 league appearances that term.

The chance to play in the Champions, Europa and/or Conference Leagues would have been a good one if he had decided to commit his long-term future to Celtic.

But there was nothing else for him to prove after mastering the Scottish Premiership – and at 23 – McGree would have risked falling into that same category with the ability he already has.

Mastering the league like Christie did may have made him a fan favourite at the Glasgow-based outfit, but with the chance to develop under Chris Wilder and a potential Premier League place on offer in the next season or two, he has made the correct career move in switching to the Riverside.

He may not be guaranteed a starting spot straight from the off with Jonny Howson, Marcus Tavernier and Jonny Howson forming an effective trio at the heart of midfield – but there’s certainly a place for him to thrive and that’s between the midfield and attack.

Matt Crooks may be a useful player going forward as a regular contributor, but he can also play in a deeper position, so it makes sense to play him alongside a player like Howson in a deeper midfield role so an extra attack-minded player in Tavernier or McGree has the license to push forward.

The latter is the perfect player to be that link between the midfield and new strikers in Aaron Connolly and Folarin Balogun – and showed his willingness to burst forward in Birmingham City’s 2-2 draw against Cardiff City last month.

He recorded two assists during that match against Steve Morison’s men, with his second being particularly impressive as he ran down the channel and supplied an inch-perfect ball for Ivan Sunjic to convert.

This is the sort of movement that can benefit Boro and provide them with the attacking firepower needed to secure their place in the top six at the end of the campaign.

And this is why this month’s move was perfect for both McGree and the Teesside club.

The former has earned his move to a promotion-chasing club after making such a key impact at St Andrew’s during the first half of the campaign – and will have fully deserved in place in the top flight if he can make a similar impression from now until the conclusion of 2021/22.

So for the sake of his career, the Australian made the right decision, making money an irrelevance in this instance.