Skip to main content
Need to know
Middlesbrough won't allow their star midfielder to leave for anything less than their asking price
Stuart Jamieson Football Content Editor
10:01, 09 Jun 2026
Everton and Crystal Palace are interested in Middlesbrough's Hayden Hackney
Everton and Crystal Palace are interested in Middlesbrough's Hayden Hackney
Middlesbrough are braced for fresh Hayden Hackney offers after Everton kicked off the bidding
Crystal Palace are reportedly preparing a £20m bid for Middlesbrough's Hayden Hackney as interest in the England Under-21 midfielder grows.
Palace are said to be ready to meet Boro's valuation of the player as they look to make a pre-emptive strike, with clubs circling around their own midfield star Adam Wharton.
With the Eagles braced for offers for the 22-year-old - Liverpool are ready to make a move - they have identified Hackney as the ideal man to step into his shoes at Selhurst Park.
Boro know that Hackney is likely to leave the Riverside this summer after they missed out on promotion to the Premier League in the 1-0 Championship play-off final defeat to Hull City.
However, they will hold out for what they believe to be the right price for the homegrown talent, which is around the £20m mark. He almost moved to Ipswich Town for that amount last summer, and while he only has one year remaining on his current contract, Boro feel his progress in the season just gone means his value has not yet dropped.
Everton made an initial offer last week, but that was dismissed by Boro as being 'miles off' what they would accept for Hackney, and so far there have been no suitable bids.
However, if Palace do come in with an offer closer to the mark, then it could cause something of a bidding war, with the likes of Newcastle United and Manchester United said to be monitoring the situation.
Former Middlesbrough manager Michael Carrick is now in charge at Old Trafford and is said to be keen to bring him to the North West.
While Boro will not want a lengthy transfer saga, with time for Kim Hellberg to strengthen the side vital this summer, competition for Hackney's signature may only drive the price up.
Keep up-to-date with all the latest Middlesbrough transfer news each day, right here on TeessideLive.
Follow gazettelive:
reach logo
At Reach and across our entities we and our partners use information collected through cookies and other identifiers from your device to improve experience on our site, analyse how it is used and to show personalised advertising. You can opt out of the sale or sharing of your data, at any time clicking the "Do Not Sell or Share my Data" button at the bottom of the webpage. Please note that your preferences are browser specific. Use of our website and any of our services represents your acceptance of the use of cookies and consent to the practices described in our Privacy Notice and Terms and Conditions.
Accept