Middlesbrough centre-back Dael Fry has been attracting interest from the Premier League, leading to Jonathan Woodgate slapping a £30million price-tag on him.

Fry has been a regular feature of Woodgate’s side this season as they look to continue their rise up the table and away from the relegation zone, a run starting in December and seeing the boss pick up the Manager of the Month award.

Boro have climbed up to 16th in the table and are now 11 points behind the play-offs with 17 games to play, something that would have seemed inconceivable around two months ago.

Dael Fry has been instrumental at the back and justifiably attracting interest from the Premier League with Burnley casting their eye over the centre-back and reportedly weighing up a £10million bid for him. However, Woodgate has moved to quash any speculation of the talented defender departing this month, by slapping a hefty £30million price-tag on him, in an attempt to ward off any more interest in him until the end of the month.

While there is no doubting the 22-year-old’s ability, a lot seemed surprised by Woodgate’s high valuation of Fry this month. Here, we take a closer look at his season to see whether his valuation is justified and why he’s held so highly at the Riverside…

Fry was one of the first players in the long list at Boro that missed games this season through injury problems, seeing him miss out in the first five league games of the season.

However, since then, Fry hasn’t missed a single game. He played 90 minutes in every single league game up until the recent draw with Birmingham where he had to be withdrawn after 37 minutes.

In a total of 2457’ minutes played for Boro, Fry has been very impressive, achieving a success rate in all of his defensive duels of 59.5%. It might not appear to be the greatest figure, but for a 22-year-old competing in a side transitioning from Tony Pulis’ management to Woodgate’s and struggling in that teething process, it’s a commendable effort so far. 

Standing at 6ft2in, it’s not surprising to learn that Fry is dominant in the air as well as on the floor, averaging a success rate of 65% in aerial duels. Playing in a three-at-the-back formation mostly, it sets up in Fry’s favour to get the better of an isolated striker, knowing that he has options either side of him.

In total, Fry has managed 165 interceptions in the Championship and 93 clearances, which averages to 6.04 and 3.44 of each per game respectively. Being lower down the table, it is understood that you’ll have to do a lot more defending and these solid performances can be diluted by the fact that concentration is more likely to slip more often. However, Fry’s numbers here are outlining just why Woodgate holds him in such high regard and why they are adamant they won’t sell him this month unless for a ridiculous fee.

Along with his interceptions and clearances, Fry manages 10.59 ball recoveries per game, outlining just how well he can read to game to stop opposition breaks.

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A move up to the Premier League would mean Fry requires more than just being able to defend well off the ball, but also be confident whilst in possession. Woodgate is trying to implement a more ‘modern’ style of play that encourages his defenders to play with the ball on the floor and keep possession. Fry’s passing accuracy stands at 82.7%, which is a solid figure for a 22-year-old in a side that have only just appeared to find their feet in the Championship this season.

Burnley will most likely be deterred from making another bid after Woodgate put such a large price-tag on him, but the figures stack up very well for Fry and make him justifiably a wanted centre-back.

Even Woodgate will think that £30million is a bit steep for the 22-year-old, but no one can argue in his unwillingness to see the Clarets try again for his signature.