Middlesbrough FC unearthed a gem in 2005 that landed them solid £15m pay day: View | OneFootball

Defender Ben Gibson will go down as one of Middlesbrough's most successful academy graduates.

Middlesbrough will be hoping to challenge for promotion from the Championship this season.

Having started slowly in each of the last two seasons, Boro are among the early front-runners in the Championship this time around, although they have still been inconsistent in the opening two months of the campaign.

After a strong summer transfer window that saw Luke Ayling, George Edmundson, Neto Borges, Aidan Morris, Ben Doak, Micah Hamilton, Delano Burgzorg and Tommy Conway join the club, Michael Carrick's men will be optimistic that they have enough quality to secure a return to the Premier League in the year ahead.

One player who will be crucial to Boro's promotion hopes this season is midfielder Hayden Hackney, who has progressed through the academy to become an integral part of the first-team in recent years, and the likes of Sol Brynn, George McCormick, Harley Hunt and Law McCabe will be keen to follow in his footsteps.

The Teesside outfit have been known for producing exciting talent over the years, and defender Ben Gibson is a notable example of a player who has gone on to enjoy a successful career after coming through the ranks at the club.

Ben Gibson is one of Middlesbrough's best academy graduates

Gibson joined the Boro academy from Marton in 2005 at the age of 12, and after some impressive performances in the reserve team, he made his debut for the club as a substitute in the 2-1 win over Coventry City in April 2011.

The defender then spent much of the next two seasons out on loan with Plymouth Argyle, York City and Tranmere Rovers before he began to make his breakthrough in the first-team at the Riverside Stadium in the 2013-14 campaign.

Gibson quickly became an important part of new manager Aitor Karanka's plans, and in the Spaniard's first full year in charge in the 2014-15 season, Boro almost won promotion to the Premier League, but they were beaten by Norwich City in the play-off final at Wembley.

However, Gibson and his team-mates were clearly motivated by that disappointment as they finished second in the Championship the following year, and the 31-year-old's partnership with Daniel Ayala was a key factor in their success.

Boro finished level on points with third-placed Brighton & Hove Albion in the 2015-16 season, with their superior goal difference proving to be decisive, and much of that was to do with their outstanding defensive solidity.

While Boro were less prolific in attack than the Seagulls, Karanka's men conceded just 31 league goals all season, keeping a remarkable 22 clean sheets, including a run of 10 consecutive shut-outs between November and January, and Gibson's contribution to his side's promotion saw his profile start to grow significantly.

Boro made an immediate return to the Championship after suffering relegation from the top flight in the 2016-17 campaign, but Gibson continued to impress on an individual level, and he received his first call-up to the England squad in March 2017, although he never made a senior appearance for the Three Lions.

To the surprise of many, Gibson remained on Teesside following relegation, but after Boro were beaten by Aston Villa in the play-off semi-finals in 2018, he made the move to Burnley for a fee of £15 million, departing after making 204 appearances for his hometown club.

Ben Gibson helped Middlesbrough on and off the pitch

While Boro would have been frustrated to lose Gibson, the £15 million fee they received for him would no doubt have helped to balance the books after relegation and the big spending under Garry Monk, and as an academy product, his sale represented pure profit for the club.

With Ayala, Dael Fry and Aden Flint on their books, Boro were still well-stocked at centre-back after Gibson's exit, and it is fair to say his departure did not have too much of a detrimental impact as Tony Pulis' side conceded just 41 league goals in the 2018-19 season.

In fact, Boro turned out to be the clear winners of the deal as Gibson struggled to make an impact with Burnley, making just six appearances during his three years at Turf Moor, and he even returned to train with his former club in February 2020 after a fall-out with Clarets manager Sean Dyche.

After his nightmare spell in Lancashire, Gibson rebuilt his reputation during his time at Norwich City, and he was named as Stoke City's captain after making the move to the bet365 Stadium this summer.

Gibson made his 400th career appearance when he started for the Potters in their 2-0 defeat at the Riverside Stadium in September, and while he will be hoping to achieve plenty of success with his new club, it is unlikely that anything will top winning promotion with Boro in 2016.