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Rob Edwards is set to become the new Middlesbrough manager and will need to start assessing his squad for the upcoming Championship season.
EFL Analysis reported earlier this week that Rob Edwards met with Steve Gibson over the weekend.
We then shared on Tuesday that Middlesbrough agreed compensation with Luton Town, while the manager had agreed terms on a deal.
Shortly after that update, EFL Analysis confirmed Edwards will become Boro boss officially on Thursday.
Now that the ex-Luton man is taking over at the Riverside Stadium, we have taken a look at three previously unimportant players who could impress in pre-season to earn a key role in 2025/26.
Three fringe Middlesbrough players Rob Edwards could start next season
Josh Coburn
Josh Coburn is expected to stay at Middlesbrough, at least for the 2025 pre-season.
The striker was heavily out of favour under Michael Carrick and was shipped out on loan to Millwall.
Injury hampered the striker, but he still scored five in 22 league matches for the Lions last term.
The 22-year-old offers a more physical presence to Tommy Conway, who is expected to start 2025/26 as Boro’s primary number nine.
But with Emmanuel Latte Lath sold, Middlesbrough need another centre-forward option, and Coburn has surely done enough in the last year to warrant being given a chance by his new manager.
George McCormick
Like the striker role, left-back is another area of concern for Middlesbrough going into next term.
McCormick is a natural centre-back and could offer something to Edwards in that area.
But the academy product played a small amount at full-back last season and looked very solid.
He’s not as attack-minded as Neto Borges, but would offer more defensive solidity in that position – something Boro really lacked across 2024/25.
Law McCabe
Law McCabe is another rising star who is surely due for more senior minutes in the coming campaign.
Jonny Howson is expected to stick around for another year, but his age means he’ll probably struggle to play every game week.
Hayden Hackney could be sold as well, meaning there is a big gap in Boro’s midfield waiting to be filled.
McCabe has shown patches of quality in his six senior outings to date and could impress Edwards enough to warrant more appearances in the coming year.