According to the Daily Mail, Middlesbrough have rejected a £9m bid for Adama Traore from Lille, with the offer falling way short of their valuation.  

Middlesbrough are looking to recoup around £14m for the winger, who will be allowed to leave the Riverside Stadium, should his valuation be met between now and the end of the summer.

The 21-year-old only arrived at the Riverside Stadium ahead of the 2016/17 campaign, and he made 27 Premier League appearances for the Teessiders last year, but was unable to prevent them slipping back into the Sky Bet Championship.

So far this season, Garry Monk has used Traore sparingly, with the winger making just three appearances across all competitions, with just one of those coming in the starting XI.

Traore has made substitute appearances in the Championship against Burton Albion and Nottingham Forest, whilst completing 90 minutes of Boro’s 3-0 victory over Scunthorpe United in the Carabao Cup second-round.

During that clash with Scunthorpe, Traore impressed, setting up Boro’s first goal, whilst also playing a part in their second.

It is believed Monk is unwilling to let Traore leave Boro without finding a replacement first.

Joe Lolley, Marvin Johnson and Ryan Kent are all currently on Boro’s radar.

The Verdict  

Boro are one of the Championship’s wealthiest clubs, and Monk is clearly under no pressure to sell players to balance the books after a busy summer so far.

It is unclear whether Traore has a part to play at the Riverside Stadium this summer, with Monk having plenty of attacking options currently at his disposal.

If we see Boro make two or three signings in the coming week, it is likely that we will see some departures.

And with Traore in-demand, he could well be on his way out of the North East.

Middlesbrough fans… Let us know your thoughts!