After failing to impress in his rare start for Boro last week, Jordan Rhodes could be potentially set for a January move away from the Riverside.
Middlesbrough’s Jordan Rhodes in action with West Ham United’s Adrian
After his big-money move to the Riverside stadium from Blackburn Rovers at the beginning of the year, things haven’t gone too well for Jordan Rhodes at Middlesbrough. Struggling to cement a first-team place, it’s likely that a player of Rhodes’ quality (he was considered the best goal-scorer in the Championship before his move to Boro) will be looking for a move away, in a search for first team football. Here’s three possible destinations for the Scottish forward.
Norwich City manager Alex Neil
Norwich City
After missing out on bringing back star striker, Dieumerci Mbokani, in the summer, the Canaries are still on the hunt for a new centre-forward. With Cameron Jerome currently doing the business, the Championship outfit will be in no rush to reinforce. However, the possibility of Jerome picking up an injury will be firmly in the thoughts of Alex Neil, and Rhodes could be an excellent back-up option, perhaps on a loan deal in January. Would the Scot want to trade one bench for another though?
Sheffield Wednesday manager Carlos Carvalhal before the match
Sheffield Wednesday
It was widely reported that Wednesday were very keen on bringing in the former Blackburn Rovers striker over the summer, and who could blame them. Rhodes was the stand-out player in his Rovers side, scoring a sensational 82 goals in 159 appearances. Wednesday’s stuttering start to the season might force their hand again in January, if they can’t draw the necessary goals from new striker, Stephen Fletcher.
Derby County manager Nigel Pearson (R) and assistant manager Chris Powell
Derby County
Many were left mystified when it was announced on deadline day that Derby County were loaning out their top scorer of the last three seasons, Chris Martin. What left fans even more confused was the fact that, despite bringing in Watford’s Matej Vydra, Derby chose not to bring in a like-for-like replacement for Martin. Vydra, who has already shown Derby fans a glimpse of how talented he can be, is known mostly for his ability to play off another striker, most obviously from his time at Watford, playing off Troy Deeney.
Therefore, you would expect Derby to look for another striker in January, to complement Vydra’s style of play, and with a loan-to-buy offer potentially on the cards, Rhodes could be an excellent option for the Rams. However, the current mystery around the Rams managerial situation, and their style of play going forward, make this a difficult one to predict.
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