Hayden Hackney stayed at Middlesbrough despite Premier League interest
12:00, 06 Feb 2026Updated 12:05, 06 Feb 2026
Middlesbrough's Hayden Hackney celebrates
Middlesbrough's Hayden Hackney celebrates(Image: PA)
Kim Hellberg says he never feared losing Hayden Hackney in the January transfer window, despite interest from the Premier League in the Middlesbrough star.
Hackney is being closely monitored by a number of Premier League teams, with less than two years left on his Boro contract. He’s excelled this season as Boro push for promotion to the top flight themselves.
The midfielder was even subject of an official offer from Nottingham Forest late in the transfer window. Despite that, Boro’s stance was clear: they had no intention of losing their star player.
That stance was helped by the fact that Hackney himself had no strong desire to leave the club last month. A boyhood Boro fan, he’s made clear it would be a dream to win promotion with the club - and now, it’s within touching distance.
For Hellberg, who admitted he did have concerns about Matt Targett’s future at the club given the lack of control Boro had over that situation, he insists he never feared losing Hackney.
Hellberg said: “I actually felt quite comfortable with him being here. All the discussions told me he wants to be here. You can see that he wants to be here, he wants to achieve big things here, and he wants to play here for the moment.
“So I was never worried about him going anywhere, actually. I put my belief in him, and so I was not so worried about that one. We’re very lucky to have him, of course.”
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That Hackney stays is being hailed by many as the most important piece of business Boro did in the January transfer window. There’s every chance that Hellberg agrees, given how influential he says the 23-year-old is around the club.
“I'm proud of how he has performed, but also how he is as a person,” the Boro boss continued. “We’ve talked about that so many times. He's been excellent and it's been helping me a lot in terms of being that type of captain, being that type of person.
“Still being at the top of his game on the pitch, but also being top off the pitch. That's as good a player as you can have as a coach.
“He helps me a lot with driving the training environment forward all the time, and helping everyone in the group. So, yeah, of course, I've been lucky to have that type of person and player.”
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