Middlesbrough player tipped to move to Championship rival despite Michael Carrick revelation | OneFootball

Josh Coburn's time at Middlesbrough could be coming to an end this summer

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more...

Thanks to Tommy Conway's fine form at the top end of the pitch for Middlesbrough, and Emmanuel Latte Lath before his Atlanta United move, one striker who has perhaps been forgotten about at the Riverside Stadium is Josh Coburn.

The Bedale-born forward joined the Boro academy in 2019 after leaving Sunderland's setup, with his most significant moment as a professional coming when he fired the club into the FA Cup quarter-finals in 2022 with an extra time winner against Tottenham.

He would spend the following season on loan in League One at Bristol Rovers though, whilst last season was somewhat of a struggle in the second half of it due to injuries - and the form of Latte Lath, plus the purchase of the aforementioned Conway from Bristol City saw another loan move for 2024-25, this time to Millwall.

Injuries have played their part again in a stop-start campaign for Coburn, but Michael Carrick has left the door open for the striker to potentially return to Boro in pre-season and stake his claim for a spot in his squad for 2025-26.

Josh Coburn tipped for summer Middlesbrough exit amid Millwall interest in permanent move

Despite being a promising graduate of the academy, it looks as though Coburn, should he return to Boro in the summer, would be behind Conway and whoever the club decide to sign as Emmanuel Latte Lath's long-term replacement, with the loan deal for Kelechi Iheanacho not really working out.

It all makes a chance for success on Teesside unlikely for Coburn, with FLW's Boro fan pundit Jasper Hudson admitting that it's probably best for all parties if the 22-year-old is cashed in on this coming summer, with current loan club Millwall a potentially ideal fit after it was revealed by their manager Alex Neil that they'd be keen to strike a permanent arragement come the summer.

"It's a shame for Coburn," Jasper told FLW.

"When he's played well, he looked a really exciting talent, and at times you can see what he's trying to do and what his game is about, and it has worked at Championship level, it worked at Bristol Rovers as well when he was on loan there.

"But, I think he's just had a consistent run of injuries that have really stunted his development, and it makes it really hard to see where he goes, and we've got a young forward in Tommy Conway who is unfortunately for Coburn much better.

"And as much as Coburn is a local lad and me and a lot of other fans I'm sure want him to succeed, I don't think it'll be at Middlesbrough.

"I think his time here is sort of over - he's had loans but they've never really materialised into a fully-successful season, and he's always had injury problems that have kept him out, and then he comes back to the club after a half-decent loan spell over a short period and he's just not been able to get that game-time and experience to progress up to the next level.

"I think it's also better for him if he moves on and gets to start - I think Millwall could be a good club for him, they play a game that suits his style and I think it would be a good move for him."

Millwall should already be preparing Josh Coburn offer despite Michael Carrick comments

Even though Carrick has somewhat opened the door to a future at Boro for Coburn, the reality is that at this moment in time, he's probably not good enough to fill the shoes of Latte Lath.

He is also not the same type of player as the Ivorian, so when Boro dip into the transfer market in the summer, they need an off the shoulder runner instead of a 6ft 3in powerhouse like Coburn.

Coburn looks to be forming a partnership with fellow young gun Mihailo Ivanovic at The Den, and if Alex Neil decides to play with two strikers, then with the right coaching and service, they could be a pair that develop into top Championship strikers - and perhaps beyond.