Middlesbrough face fight to keep Adam Johnson

Jan 24 2010 by Steve Brown, Sunday Sun

MIDDLESBROUGH’S resolve to hang on to Adam Johnson will undergo its sternest test this week when a host of clubs step up their pursuit of the 22-year-old winger.

However, the Teessiders’ hopes of landing a ready-made replacement in Wayne Routledge have received a timely boost after a QPR source described Boro as “an attractive proposition” for the England under-21 international.

Johnson is out of contract in the summer and, though Boro boss Gordon Strachan has insisted his star player is likely to remain at the Riverside until the end of the season, cash-strapped Boro would find it hard to resist a big-money offer for a player who could leave for free in the close-season.

Strachan said: “I think he will stay in this window. That is my opinion.

“The guy likes playing for this club and he would like to get us back to the top level.”

However, potential suitors have been queuing up for the England under-21 international for some time.

Tottenham Hotspur’s ongoing interest dates back two years, while sources last week alleged Johnson was being shown around Sunderland’s Academy of Light at the same time Boro confirmed an approach from Wolves.

Everton have also been linked with the player, but the real pressure to sell could come from moneybags Manchester City and Chelsea.

With Johnson’s fellow-wideman Mark Yeates having already exited the Riverside to join Sheffield United, Boro bid £500,000 for QPR winger Routledge.