Republic of Ireland underage international Finn Azaz has completed a move from Aston Villa to Middlesbrough.
The 23-year-old midfielder, who has played for the Ireland Under-21s, signed for an undisclosed fee.
Azaz will arrive at the Riverside Stadium on a four-and-a-half-year contract after starring during an 18-month loan spell at Championship rivals Plymouth.
"I could see that it would be a good fit, from speaking to the manager, and from playing against the club and from speaking to the staff and a couple of players here. It seemed like the perfect fit," said Azaz, speaking on the Middlesbrough's media channel.
"It's the next step for me and hopefully I can step out of my comfort zone and grow again and keep improving."
"I'm an attacking midfielder by mould, but I'm very versatile and I'm constantly looking for space and playing forward, that's hopefully what I will be bringing," added Azaz, when asked what Middlesbrough fans can expect from their new signing.
Manager Michael Carrick said: "I'm delighted to bring Finn to the club. He's an exciting player who already comes with good experience. He’s had a good season so far and we’re really looking forward to working with him."
The two sides will actually meet in the third round of the FA Cup on Saturday - Azaz is not eligible to play - and Carrick has warned his players they have no chance of knocking Premier League high-fliers Aston Villa out of the FA Cup unless they firmly believe they can.
The Sky Bet Championship side host Unai Emery's men – who currently sit in second place in the top flight after a fine first half of the season – in the third round on Saturday, desperate to erase memories of last season’s 5-1 drubbing by Brighton at the same stage.
Former Manchester United and England midfielder Carrick, an FA Cup winner in 2016, knows his team will be underdogs as they head into the tie, but is equally aware of the potential for an upset.
The Boro head coach said: "Listen, you’ve got to have the belief and the confidence that you can perform and perform well and you’re capable of winning the game.
"That’s the start; you have to believe it. If you don’t believe it, then you haven’t got a chance.
"But being realistic, there’s a different mental test in some ways when you’re the favourite and you’re totally expected to win.
"We were talking about the motivation before and how you have to motivate the players. Sometimes that can be the difference.
"But now for us, it’s a great opportunity. For the players to test themselves and have a game like that, it’s brilliant, absolutely brilliant.
"Hopefully they’ll thrive and they’ll take the game to another level again and use the experience to become better players and a better team."
A glance at @finnazaz's @SkyBetChamp stats so far this campaign 📊
— Middlesbrough FC (@Boro) January 5, 2024
🤝 @propertyexpres_ #UTB pic.twitter.com/7fAJeOLthq
Boro, whose focus for the campaign remains promotion, face a tough cup double-header inside four days with big-spending Chelsea due at the Riverside Stadium on Tuesday for the first leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final showdown.
Carrick has had to contend with a selection crisis which robbed him of 12 players for the New Year’s Day defeat by Coventry, but the return of Hayden Hackney, Matt Crooks and Emmanuel Latte Lath in recent days could provide a welcome boost.
He said: "It’s big challenge for us. It’s great, though, it’s fantastic. We’ve got to enjoy the challenge. For me, you want to play against the best teams and best players individually and as a group.
"Aston Villa are having an unbelievable season so far and have got some really, really good players and are obviously well coached, so it’s a big challenge.
"But it’s great. It’s a one-off game for us this one and we can give it our best and see where it takes us. Football is funny at times, it throws up results that maybe shouldn’t happen.
"We know that this is one that probably shouldn’t go our way on paper, but we’ll do our best to try to flip that."
Additional reporting from PA
