Middlesbrough's eight-figure Burnley sale can be viewed as a masterstroke with hindsight: View | OneFootball

FLW takes a look back at Boro's 2018 £15m sale of Ben Gibson to Burnley, and why the Teessiders came away as the clear winners from the deal.

Middlesbrough's 2018 sale of Ben Gibson to Burnley for £15m looked to be a good deal for both clubs at the time, but with the benefit of hindsight, it was Boro who pulled off a transfer masterstroke.

Boro had just fallen short of making an instant return to the Premier League in the 2017/18 season, losing to Aston Villa in the Championship play-off semi-finals.

Gibson tried everything he could to make amends for suffering top-flight relegation with his boyhood club, but after receiving England recognition the season prior, plying his trade in the second tier was no longer an option.

As such, Middlesbrough cashed in on their academy graduate in the summer of 2018, as a reported £15m deal was struck with a Burnley side who had just achieved a 7th-placed finish in the Premier League, meaning they'd be playing Europa League football that season.

It appeared to be a dream move for Gibson, but his time at Turf Moor soon turned into a nightmare, and thus crowned Boro the obvious winners of the trade.

Gibson had earned Burnley move after excellent service to Middlesbrough

Having been with Middlesbrough from a young age, Gibson emerged from Boro's academy to make his senior debut in April 2011.

Loan moves up and down the English football pyramid followed, with the central defender spending time in League One, Two and the National League between 2011-2013, with Plymouth Argyle, York City and Tranmere Rovers respectively.

It was the 2013/14 season that saw Gibson establish himself as a first team regular at the Riverside, making 33 appearances in all competitions during the 2013/14 campaign.

Rarely would he be out of the starting lineup in the four seasons that would follow, with Gibson playing a leading role in a Championship play-off final season in 2014/15, Boro's promotion-winning side of 2015/16, before playing in every single one of Middlesbrough's 38 Premier League games in 2016/17.

After playing almost every game of Middlesbrough's 2017/18 Championship campaign, Gibson had proven that he was good enough to earn another chance of playing in the Premier League.

That chance came when Burnley made their move for him, for what was a joint club record fee at the time, and nobody on Teesside held anything against one of their own for calling time on his career in the North East.

Gibson had given Middlesbrough absolutely everything over the years, with memorable moments aplenty, securing a legacy as one of the club's finest academy products and best central defenders in recent times.

Gibson's Burnley career didn't go to plan, crowning Boro the clear winners of the deal

Gibson set off for his Turf Moor venture with the best wishes of every Middlesbrough supporter, and arrived ready to compete for regular playing time in the heart of Sean Dych's defence.

After all, Burnley hadn't parted with that much money for him to not play a large role, as the Clarets clearly saw him as a big part of their future.

Unfortunately, Gibson's Clarets career never got off the ground, with repetitive injury problems robbing him of any chance to live up to his price tag.

Making just five appearances in the 2018/19 season, and just one in the 2019/20 campaign, Gibson would make just six total appearances for Burnley during his two seasons at Turf Moor.

Norwich City would end his miserable spell with the club in the summer of 2021, paying a reported £8m to acquire his services after spending the 2020/21 season on loan at Carrow Road, meaning Burnley had taken a huge hit on what they'd bought him for just three years earlier.

Therefore, it's no surprise to see Gibson featuring on many Clarets supporters' biggest flops lists, even if it wasn't particularly through any fault of his.

What his torrid time with Burnley and his resulting cut-price transfer to Norwich undoubtedly meant was that Middlesbrough were the big winners of their deal.