Alan Browne detailed his relief at making a transfer deadline day switch to Middlesbrough from neighbours Sunderland, as he targets game-time and promotion on Teesside.
The midfielder joined Boro on loan from Sunderland, 12 months after moving to Wearside on a free when ending his ten-year association with Preston North End. Boro made the move after allowing Law McCabe and Dan Barlaser to leave on loan, with the 30-year-old adding significant Championship experience to Rob Edwards’ midfield.
Browne made 23 appearances for Sunderland last season as he played his part on and off the pitch in an otherwise young squad in helping them win promotion via the play-offs. Having been frozen out thanks to an influx of new arrivals this summer, however, the Ireland international is keen to get his career going again.
“It’s probably relief more than anything,” Browne said of his move in his first club interview. “I’m delighted to finally get it over the line. There were several offers but for obvious reasons, this one felt like the right move. It’s close to home where I am now, and I have a young family, so that’s always going to make the move easier.
“This is a massive club - a Premier League club, if we’re being honest. And that’s what I’m going to try and help the club get back to. They’ve made an amazing start so far, have so many good individual players, and after a brief chat with the manager, he talked me into it as well.”
With Browne not part of this month’s Ireland squad, he will spend the next fortnight at Rockliffe integrating with his new team-mates and getting to grips with Edwards’ tactical expectations. Ironically, he will be in line to make his debut for Boro at Deepdale against Preston - the club he made his name at and captained for so long.
While not playing regularly for Sunderland last season and therefore targeting that at Boro, it makes his time with Preston feel all the more special. He played 30-plus league games in all but his very first year as a Lilywhite, and will hope to emulate that at the Riverside, starting at Deepdale.
“My experience at Preston was brilliant,” he said. “I went from a boy to a man basically at that club. It was life-changing for me at the time and I grew as a person and a player throughout my years there. I gained loads of different experiences while there which hopefully I can bring with me to this club.
“I can’t wait to put on the shirt and play my first game. I haven’t played as much as I would have liked in the last year or so. I want to get back playing regular football, for the club first and foremost, and then, if and when I get an Ireland callup, brilliant. That will be something I relish again.”
To play games, Browne will have to try and displace Hayden Hackney and Aidan Morris - with the Boro pair starting the season in fine form. However, with the Championship season long and arduous, Boro are likely to need options throughout, and Browne appears far more suited to Edwards’ needs in comparison to Barlaser in particular, who completed a deadline-day loan exit to Hibernian.
On what he hopes to offer Boro, Browne concluded: “I would like to think that I am really energetic, really aggressive and I like to do both sides of the game - attack and defend. Hopefully I can chip in and help as much as I can when we get going again. I’ve played at the Riverside numerous times and know how good the fans can be to their own players. Hopefully they can play their part and help get us over the line this year.”