Middlesbrough are playing catch-up after the appointment of Rob Edwards with their Championship rivals having been busy
The Championship clubs have been bustling in the transfer market over the past few days as they ramp up their summer reinforcements.
Middlesbrough have yet to make a move. The only new faces heading to Portugal for the pre-season camp were Rob Edwards and his coaching staff, with no summer signings to bolster the ranks.
The Teessiders’ search for a new head coach has meant transfers have been on the backburner somewhat, although Kieran Scott and Boro’s recruitment team have been hard at work behind the scenes identifying potential targets.
However, other second-tier clubs including Preston North End, Birmingham City and Stoke City have been active. Let’s take a look at the transactions completed in the past few days.
Birmingham City
Birmingham City’s hefty spending on recruitment has continued unabated with the signing of ex-Celtic forward Kyogo Furuhashi from French top-tier side Rennes for an undisclosed fee, believed to be around the £8million mark. The Blues have secured the Japan international on a three-year contract following their promotion to the Championship as League One champions.
During his stint at Celtic, Furuhashi netted 85 goals in 165 appearances and was the Scottish Premiership’s top scorer in the 2022-23 season with 27 goals. He moved to Rennes in January for £10m but is back in Britain just six months later with Chris Davies’ newly-promoted team, despite strong rumours of a return to Celtic.
It continues a furious start to the transfer window for the Blues, ollowing the earlier arrivals of Nigeria full-back Bright Osayi-Samuel and Jamaica winger Demarai Gray on permanent deals and the loan signings of Wolves midfielder Tommy Doyle and England Euro Under-21 winning goalkeeper James Beadle.
Birmingham, who won the League One title last season with an English Football League record 111 points, are one of the favourites for promotion again.
Charlton Athletic
Charlton Athletic’s manager Nathan Jones has made a strategic move by signing defender Amari’i Bell, whom he previously managed at Luton Town.
The 31-year-old, whose contract with the Hatters expired this summer, has joined the Addicks on a free transfer and penned a two-year deal with the club that has just secured promotion.
Bell, who is also a Jamaica international, played an instrumental role in Luton’s ascent to the Premier League in 2021 and featured in 21 matches during their top-flight campaign before they faced relegation the following year. He remained a key player as the team descended to League One last season.
With 28 caps for his country, Bell recently netted a goal against Panama in the Concacaf Gold Cup match.
“Amari’i’s someone I know well. I signed him at Luton and he did fantastically well for me,” Jones expressed on the club’s official website.
Ipswich Town
Forward George Hirst has committed his future to the club by signing a new four-year contract. Since arriving on loan from Leicester City in January 2023 and making his stay permanent six months later, the 26 year old striker has racked up 81 appearances and scored 19 goals.
Hirst has been pivotal in Ipswich’s successive promotions from League One to the Premier League and earned his first cap for Scotland in March.
“I’ve enjoyed every single day at the club since joining, and am really pleased to have signed a new deal,” Hirst shared with enthusiasm on the club’s website.
Preston North End
Preston have secured a four-year contract with Brighton’s Odel Offiah. The fee remains undisclosed but is rumoured to be in the ‘seven-figure’ range as the Lancashire club continue to bolster their ranks.
The defender spent last season on loan at Blackpool, where he made 40 League One appearances and scored once.
Offiah, who can play as a right-back and centre-back, originated from Brighton and has made six Premier League appearances.
The 22 year old told the club website: “Speaking to the gaffer [Paul Heckingbottom], I think we saw eye to eye in terms of how I want to develop as a footballer – this is definitely the right place for me.
Preston have also welcomed Daniel Iversen, Thierry Small, Jordan Thompson and Pol Valentin to their ranks.
Stoke City
The Potters made two signings in one day, securing Plymouth defender Maksym Talovierov and striker Divin Mubama on a season-long loan from Manchester City. Talovierov has signed a three-year deal and the pair join Sorba Thomas as new signings in the summer transfer window.
Talovierov has been signed for an undisclosed fee after just six months at Argyle where he quickly became a fan favourite following his move from LASK.
Former West Ham trainee Mubama arrives following a debut season at City in which he scored his first senior goal for the club in an 8-0 victory against Salford in the FA Cup.
Swansea City
The Swans have signed Ethan Galbraith from Leyton Orient for an undisclosed fee. The Northern Ireland midfielder has agreed a three-year deal with the option of a further season. Swansea have long admired the former Manchester United youngster, having first attempted to sign him during the January transfer window.”
“Ethan is hungry and motivated for the challenge of stepping up to the Championship,” said Swansea head coach Alan Sheehan.
Galbraith joins defenders Cameron Burgess and Ricardo Santos, winger Zeidane Inoussa and forward Bobby Wales in signing for Swansea this summer.
Watford
Watford have secured Portuguese forward Vivaldo Semedo on a five-year deal for an undisclosed fee from Serie A side Udinese. The 20-year-old spent the previous season on loan at Portuguese second division side Vizela, where he netted nine times in 25 appearances.
“Vivaldo is exactly the kind of player profile we want and need at Watford,” sporting director Gian Luca Nani told the club website. “He will learn under [head coach] Paulo [Pezzolano] and we know he will adapt quickly to English football because we have already seen the development over a short period of time.”
Semedo has represented all of Portugal’s international youth sides between under-17 and under-20 levels. He becomes the Hornets’ fifth signing of the summer following the arrivals of Hector Kyprianou, Nathan Baxter, Marc Bola and Semedo’s former Udinese team-mate James Abankwah.
