According to Sky Sports reporter Keith Downie, Middlesbrough centre-back Grant Hall has been ruled out for ‘3 to 4 months’ with a thigh injury.
It is bad news for both Middlesbrough supporters and Grant Hall, whose career on Teesside hasn’t really got going since he signed on a free transfer from fellow-Championship side Queens Park Rangers in the summer.
The central defender played in Boro’s opening three fixtures, against Watford, Bournemouth, and Queens Park Rangers respectively, before picking up a calf injury.
Since then Middlesbrough have had one of the best defences in the division and currently sit in 10th position going into the midweek fixtures.
In Hall’s absence, manager Neil Warnock has utilised Dael Fry, Anfernee Dijksteel and Paddy McNair in a back three and it has worked to great effect. However, the Boro boss will want to have Hall back as soon as possible to give his side another option in defence.
Hall did return to the bench for Middlesbrough’s home game against Norwich City last week, but was ultimately unused in the 1-0 defeat.
He has now picked up another injury, this time on his thigh, and he will be expected to missing in action until March 2021 at the earliest.
Boro could look to the January transfer window for a defensive reinforcement, with the club linked to Chelsea’s Baba Rahman in the summer, this is a deal they could revisit next month with the Ghana international able to play on the left of a back three comfortably.
