Expert tells Middlesbrough fans what to expect from 25-goal ace David Strelec after £6.5m move

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Middlesbrough’s new centre-forward recruit could help fire Rob Edwards’ side to promotion this season.

Middlesbrough added 11 new faces to Rob Edwards’ squad within the summer transfer window, with a vast array of deals and talent over the line.

Edwards was elated with Middlesbrough’s business this summer, and those signings are primed to help continue Boro’s outstanding start to the campaign.

Ahead of the international break, Middlesbrough are the only team in the Championship to have taken maximum points from their opening four fixtures.

What is even more impressive is the fact that those victories came before long-standing transfer target David Strelec was signed from Slovan Bratislava, and one Slovakian football journalist has explained why Boro fans ought to be excited by the striker’s arrival.

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Expert believes Middlesbrough signing David Strelec is ‘total package’

After being linked in January, Middlesbrough held fresh talks with Strelec last month before Bratislava’s Europa League qualifiers, in which the Slovakian scored and assisted in a 3-2 defeat to Young Boys.

After Slovan were eliminated, Edwards confirmed there was truth in the Strelec links and only days later, his move for an initial £6.5m with the potential for another £2.5m in add-ons was confirmed.

Strelec returned to his boyhood club Bratislava on a free transfer in August 2023, and since then has scored 44 goals and notched 20 assists in just 97 outings, with 25 goals coming last season before his Boro move.

Now, Slovakian football journalist Lukas Vrablik has offered some insight for the Boro faithful about the qualities Strelec will bring to the Riverside.

He told the BBC: “He’s the total package – he’s a technical player with some clever movement and very good in combinations on counter-attacks.

“He has what it takes to succeed – last time it didn’t work out when he went abroad but he’s a better player now and he’s now a vital player for the international team so that proves it.

“The Premier League would be a step too far for him right now, but the Championship is fine for him and is a great league for a player from the Slovak league to move to.

“He’s a hero of the city because Slovan Bratislava have had better results over the past few years, reaching the Champions League group phase, so he is one of the poster boys of that success as he graduated from the academy.”

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David Strelec can fire Rob Edwards’ Middlesbrough to promotion

Given the goalscoring prowess Strelec brings from Bratislava, he features in Edwards’ best Middlesbrough XI and could form a lethal combination with Tommy Conway in the final third.

When Edwards reviewed Middlesbrough’s summer window, he commented on the signing of Strelec, admitting that he was elated with the acquisition.

Edwards told Middlesbrough’s media: “I really like him (David Strelec). I think the supporters are really going to like him as well. He’s really excited about coming in and helping us. So, delighted with that one.”

With Edwards and Vrablik aligned on what Strelec will bring to Middlesbrough, the Boro fans will be desperate to see the striker in action, and the 25-goal man will be in line for his debut against Preston North End after the international break.