Middlesbrough: Jonathan Woodgate drops Juninho, Rockliffe reveal | OneFootball

Jonathan Woodgate shared a picture alongside former Middlesbrough favourite Juninho, with the Brazilian visiting the training ground.

Highlights

Middlesbrough first-team coach Jonathan Woodgate revealed that former favourite Juninho visited the training ground as he posted a picture alongside the ex-Brazilian international on social media.

Michael Carrick’s side are stepping up their preparations for the new Championship season, which is now less than a week away, and they had a special guest ahead of their opener against Swansea at the Riverside Stadium.

That’s after Woodgate, who is also a popular figure from his playing days, took to Instagram to share an image alongside Juninho - the man he described as a ‘legend’.

“A Boro legend turned up at Rockcliffe today UTB.”

Junino is fondly thought of at Middlesbrough

It may seem remarkable that Juninho initially joined Boro almost 30 years ago, when he completed a surprise big-money move to the Teesside outfit following their promotion to the Premier League.

In the end, Juninho, who was part of the Brazil squad that won the World Cup in 2002, would have three spells at Middlesbrough, and his performances were a joy to watch for the supporters.

The creative midfielder made almost 150 appearances, which included helping Boro to their memorable League Cup win back in 2004.

So, his name is etched in Boro folklore, and there’s no doubt fans will love to see that Juninho still clearly has an affection for Boro as he visited the training ground whilst back in the north-east.

Middlesbrough may not see another like Juninho again

As mentioned, Juninho’s transfer was one that came out of the blue, and he was a player in-demand after his impressive performances with São Paulo, and Boro won the race for his signature during a period in their history where they were big-spenders and very ambitious.

We know how much football has changed in the past three decades, and the days of a newly-promoted club going out and making such a statement signing are long gone.

Thankfully, for Boro, they got to see Juninho over three spells and many of the 49 caps he won for Brazil came when he was on their books.

Michael Carrick will hope to bring the good times back to Middlesbrough

But, that’s not to say that there shouldn’t be optimism about what the future can hold under Carrick, as it’s clear they’re heading in the right direction under the former Man Utd coach.

It was disappointing that they missed out on the play-offs last season, but a combination of injuries and losing key players from the campaign before meant it was always going to be difficult.

Plus, it was an incredibly competitive last time out, and Boro will feel that they’re capable of making a real push for promotion this time around.

Of course, there’s business that needs to be done in the market, but Carrick and the recruitment team have built an exciting, young squad that has a lot of talent in it.

So, it will be interesting to see how the rest of the window plays out, and if Boro