Nottingham Forest are preparing to move quickly for Middlesbrough midfielder Hayden Hackney after Middlesbrough’s dramatic injury-time defeat by Hull City in the Championship play-off final made his exit look far more likely.
The Premier League club had already tried to sign Hackney in the January transfer window and were advancing plans for a summer move regardless of Middlesbrough’s league status. But Forest now believe the pathway is considerably clearer for the 23-year-old to leave Teesside after Middlesbrough fell short of promotion at Wembley.
Hackney’s return to action in the final was one of the night’s few personal positives for Middlesbrough. He had missed the run-in through injury, then came off the bench shortly after the hour mark in an emotional comeback before Hull’s late winner ended the club’s push for promotion. The midfielder is now in the final 12 months of his contract, and that alone has sharpened the market around him.
Forest’s interest is also shaped by what is happening at the other end of their own squad. Elliot Anderson is expected to depart in a deal that could break the British transfer record, with Manchester City pushing to complete that move next week. If Anderson goes, Forest will need a major midfield reset, and Hackney has been identified as one of the leading candidates to fill part of that gap.
That interest is not new. Tottenham, Brentford, Everton, Fulham, Crystal Palace, Brighton and Bournemouth have all carried out scouting work and analysis on Hackney over recent months, a reminder of how widely he is regarded as one of the most highly rated midfielders outside the Premier League. The Championship Player of the Year has built a reputation that has carried beyond Middlesbrough’s own season and into a crowded summer market.
Middlesbrough, for their part, are not preparing to sell cheaply. They will seek a fee close to £25million for Hackney and believe Bournemouth’s 2023 move for Alex Scott from Bristol City offers a useful benchmark for negotiations involving elite Championship midfield talent. That valuation may test interest, but the club’s failure to go up has strengthened the case for a sale more than it has weakened it.
There is still a gap between Forest’s need and Middlesbrough’s price, and that is where the deal will be decided. If Anderson leaves as expected and Forest want to move fast, Hackney could become one of the first major midfield transfers of the summer. Middlesbrough know that, and after Wembley they are bargaining from a weaker position than they were 24 hours ago.
For Hackney, the next step is likely to be shaped by a market that has already done its homework. For Middlesbrough, the hard part may now be convincing clubs that a player with 12 months left on his deal is worth the figure they want, even after a season that ended in pain rather than promotion.
