Middlesbrough set for key Rob Edwards transfer breakthrough with Newcastle United agreement | OneFootball

Boro are set to tick a major transfer priority box ahead of the 1 September deadline.

Middlesbrough are reportedly set to seal a loan deal for Newcastle United defender Matt Targett.

That's according to talkSPORT's chief football correspondent Alex Crook via X on Friday.

It's been no secret that Middlesbrough and their head coach Rob Edwards have been desperate to strengthen on the left side of their defence this summer, but attempts have so far yielded no results.

However, their luck appears to have changed, as they seem to have been given a helping hand by their North East rivals with a loan agreement seemingly struck that will see the 29-year-old Targett temporarily swap Tyneside for Teesside.

Middlesbrough set to sign Newcastle United defender Matt Targett on loan

With the summer transfer window now just days away from slamming shut on 1 September, Middlesbrough look to have finally made a big breakthrough in their pursuit of a new left wing-back.

As Crook revealed, Boro are set to complete the loan signing of Newcastle United defender Matt Targett.

A further update from Northern Echo reporter Dominic Shaw via X has confirmed that it will be a season-long loan deal for the Magpies man.

The Teessiders are understood to have placed their crosshairs on Targett after conceding defeat in their efforts to sign Columbus Crew star Max Arfsten, who has was the subject of a failed approach worth around £2.25m from Middlesbrough recently.

However, Boro's transfer chiefs are said to have not fully given up on Arfsten, and thus will continue to monitor him from afar ahead of a potential move in the future.

Matt Targett could be excellent signing for Middlesbrough

Middlesbrough have been successfully installing their new recruitment model focused around the identification, purchasing, developing and selling on of young talent in recent years.

However, every successful squad, particularly in the Championship and EFL in general, has to include a number of experienced players that have been there and done it.

Targett certainly is one of those, having made over 160 appearances at Premier League level - as per Transfermarkt - for Newcastle, Aston Villa and Southampton respectively.

He also knows exactly what it takes to win promotion from the Championship to the Premier League, having been part of Fulham's 2017/18 play-off final-winning team.

So, at 29 and having proven himself at the top-flight of English football for the vast majority of his career, the former England youth international who Newcastle coughed up £15m to bring to St. James' Park from Aston Villa in 2022, will surely be desperate to get back to playing regular football once again.

Indeed, he only made seven first-team appearances for Toon last season, and for a player of his proven quality, that will surely have only served to light a fire in him to once again show that he's still a quality defender.

Therefore, should he stay fit, Middlesbrough could land themselves a real top-class left-wing back at Championship level, whilst also taking vast amounts of pressure off Sammy Silvera's shoulders, who has propped up the left side of Boro's defence in superb fashion through the early exchanges of the season.