Middlesbrough haven’t made the best start to the season, although that’s to be expected following their disappointment last season as they fell at the penultimate hurdle in their quest to secure promotion to the Premier League.

Their off-field work needs to be commended though – because they have managed to bring in some very gifted players.

Alex Gilbert, Rav van den Berg, Tom Glower, Morgan Rogers, Sam Silvera, Seny Dieng, Jamie Jones, Lukas Engel, Emmanuel Latte Lath and Alex Bangura have all joined permanently.

And Sam Greenwood and Lewis O’Brien both joined on loan during the latter stages of the summer window, with both likely to be real assets for the Teesside outfit during the 2023/24 campaign if they can remain fit and available.

They may have lost Chuba Akpom – but their arrivals have compensated for that and they will be hoping to aim for promotion again – with the majority of their first-teamers tied down to deals that last beyond next summer.

The Teesside outfit have worked hard on this during the summer, with Dael Fry and the promising Hayden Hackney just two players to have put pen to paper on extensions at their current club.

Who is currently set to depart Middlesbrough in 2024?

There are a few first-teamers that are set to depart the Riverside in 2024 though and we take a look at them below. This list excludes loanees Greenwood and O’Brien and players out on loan including Liam Roberts.

Paddy McNair

It wouldn’t have been a surprise to have seen McNair sold during the summer window because of his contract situation and the other options Michael Carrick has.

However, the Northern Irishman would be an asset for any club in this division with his ability to play in a number of positions and he could be a very useful squad player to have at the Riverside during the 2023/24 campaign.

A switch to a back three would probably boost his chances of starting every week – but that switch may not come anytime soon under Boro’s current boss who has been faithful to a back four.

It will be interesting to see how many appearances he wins this season – because he could be a regular starter or could fall down the pecking order. His versatility could work in his favour.

Jonny Howson

Howson is someone who won’t end up being sold for a huge amount of money considering he’s 35 now.

However, the ex-Leeds United man is still a crucial player in this team and it wouldn’t be a surprise if he’s offered another one-year extension at the end of this season if he performs well enough.

Considering his age, Steve Gibson may not want to keep him for too much longer, because he could prevent a younger player (who could be sold for a decent amount in the future) from starting regularly and developing.

But Howson is clearly a major asset in the dressing room and could be key to turning things around for Boro following an underwhelming start to the campaign. He will need to be an asset both on and off the pitch though if he wants to stay at Boro for as long as possible.