Back in the summer of 2017, disappointment at the Riverside Stadium was rife.
Middlesbrough, after finishing 19th in the league standings, had just been relegated from the Premier League, and Boro supporters did not know when they might see their side back in the top-flight.
Naturally, as is the case with most clubs when they suffer relegation, there was widespread changes at Middlesbrough that summer, with plenty of incomings as well as outgoings.
Indeed, despite their drop back to the Championship, Boro were not afraid to splash the cash.
However, they will surely regret spending the amount of money they did on the trio below, given how their respective careers at the Riverside Stadium turned out.
Middlesbrough’s triple striker signing following relegation
One player that Boro turned to that summer was forward Britt Assombalonga, who put pen to paper on a deal at the Riverside Stadium following a club-record transfer from Nottingham Forest.
Middlesbrough forked out a whopping £15 million for the then 24-year-old, and he was just one of several additions that would go on to prove bad business by the club.
For example, just days prior to Assombalonga’s arrival, Middlesbrough completed the signing of Martin Braithwaite from Toulouse, paying £9 million for his signature.
Boro also went on to fork out a further seven figure transfer fee on yet another forward later that month, spending £6.5 million on bringing in Ashley Fletcher from West Ham United.
Trio proved to be bad business by Middlesbrough
Despite being big spenders that summer, a lot of the club’s signings underwhelmed and proved to be bad business, which can certainly be said of the above trio.
To be fair to Britt Assombalonga, he was probably the best of the above bunch, and did score goals regularly at the Riverside.
In all of his seasons at the club, for example, barring his last, the striker hit double digits, and were it not for injuries picked up during his first two seasons at the club, he may well have went on to hit the 20-goal mark.
Ultimately, he didn’t though, and when you are spending £15 million and a club record in the Championship, you are expecting a 20 goal plus striker that can fire the club to promotion.
The best Middlesbrough did during Assombalonga’s time at the club was reach the play-offs, before he eventually left in 2021.
Adding further to the fact Boro did not spend the cash on him well, Assombalonga left on a free transfer, recouping the club none of the £15 million they had spent on him.
The same can unfortunately be said with regards to Ashley Fletcher’s transfer fee, with the former West Ham man also moving on for free when he joined Watford in 2021.
Fletcher struggled much more than Assombalonga at Middlesbrough, scoring just 28 goals throughout his time at the club.
Ashley Fletcher’s Championship goal record at Middlesbrough, according to Transfermarkt
Season
Matches
Goals
Assists
2017/18
16
1
2
2018/19
21
5
0
2019/20
43
11
7
2020/21
12
2
1
Indeed, Fletcher’s best return came in 2019/20, bagging 11 Championship goals – the only time he hit double figures in the league whilst at Middlesbrough.
Fortunately for Middlesbrough, they were able to recoup some of the transfer fee they paid for Martin Braithwaite when he left the club in 2019.
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