Middlesbrough have today confirmed the departure of Spanish goalkeeper Tomas Mejias, nearly seven years after he arrived on Teesside.

Mejias has joined Turkish club Ankaraspor (which was seemingly announced last week) in the wake of leaving the Riverside, having spent the first half of the season out on loan in Romania at Dinamo Bucharest.

The 31-year-old started his professional career at Spanish giants Real Madrid, but in his seven years as a pro there he only made one league appearance - in the 2010/11 campaign - before departing for Boro in 2014, initially on loan.

Mejias started the first five games of the 2014/15 season, but was quickly relegated to a back-up role with Dimi Konstantopolous taking the reins.

The bench became a permanent place of residence for Mejias in the end, and his only regular football in the last six years besides his spell in Romania this season was in 2018/19, where he was the first-choice at Omonia Nicosia.

 

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A move to Turkey will now give the lesser-spotted Mejias the chance to flourish in a more regular capacity, and Boro fans have been reacting to the news with mostly good grace.