Middlesbrough have effectively been ruled out of the race to sign a striker they’re linked with in January after his asking price has been revealed.
Michael Carrick has overseen a slightly underwhelming season in Teesside, given the club were tipped by many to secure promotion this season.
Instead, after a run of seven league games without a win to start the season, Boro rallied to end the campaign in eighth place, four points off the play-offs.
Boro fans have cause for optimism ahead of next season with their final day performance too, as they watched their club finish in style with a 3-1 win over Watford.
Attention will now turn to the summer, where Carrick and the board will have to work together to identify transfer targets.
Hearts set fee for Middlesbrough target Lawrence Shankland
One player that is now unlikely to make the move to The Riverside is Hearts captain Lawrence Shankland.
Middlesbrough had been linked with a move for the 28-year-old in January, with the fact he was approaching the last year of his contract reason to believe they might be able to negotiate a cheap deal.
Despite his contract situation, Hearts stood firm in January and demanded £5 million for his services.
Hearts have secured European football next season with a third place finish in the Scottish Premier League and this has strengthened their position financially, meaning they are not anticipated to budge on the £5 million they wanted a few months ago.
This is bad news for Boro, who are not expected to spend such a fee on any one individual this summer.
Who is Middlesborough target Shankland?
Shankland is a nine-cap Scotland international who has spent almost the entirety of his career in his homeland.
The only exception to this was a season at Belgian club Beerschot V.A. In the 2021/22 season in which he scored five league goals and provided four assists according to Transfermarkt.
This season the centre-forward has been in inspired form as he has scored 28 goals and laid on eight assists in 44 games in all competitions.
With his contract running down and the player at the peak of his powers, this summer feels like the perfect time for the Hearts skipper to make the move south of the border.
Speaking after Shankland scored a penalty against fierce rivals Hibernian despite having countless items thrown at him, teammate Nathaniel Atkinson could not be more complimentary of his captain, as he said:
“I think [Shankland] had a bite of a pie after he scored the goal. He came in at half-time and said it was a bit of a spicy one.
“He’s a world class player and nothing is going to put him off.”
Unfortunately, unless Hearts drop their price, Boro may have to forget about Shankland in the summer and move on to other targets.