Chuba Akpom: Middlesbrough striker joins Ajax for initial £10.5m

Chuba Akpom has previously played his club football in Greece and Belgium

Dutch giants Ajax have signed striker Chuba Akpom from Championship club Middlesbrough in a deal worth up to 14.3m euros (£12.2m).

The 27-year-old is yet to feature this season but finished last term with 29 goals for Boro in all competitions to finish as the second tier's top scorer.

It was the ex-Arsenal striker's best career return, with a total of 106 goals in 309 senior matches.

"I'd like to thank everyone connected with Boro," Akpom said.

"Last season was full of memories I'll never forget and I will be forever proud. Everyone knows what I think of [Middlesbrough boss] Michael Carrick, and I'm sure success is just around the corner.

"For me now, I have an exciting new challenge with one of the biggest clubs in the world, and I can't wait to get started with Ajax."

Ajax finished third in the Dutch Eredivisie in 2022-23, 13 points behind champions and fierce rivals Feyenoord, but started this campaign with a 4-1 win over Heracles Almelo.

Akpom began his career at Arsenal, coming through the youth ranks to play 12 first-team games, but the majority of his time at Emirates Stadium was spent on loan to Brentford, Coventry, Nottingham Forest, Hull, Brighton, and Belgian side Sint-Truiden.

He scored 29 goals in 131 games at Greek side PAOK Thessaloniki, winning the league championship and cup double, and returned for a loan stint following his permanent move to Middlesbrough.

It was the arrival of Carrick to replace Chris Wilder last season that seemed to ignite Akpom's season, moving him to a withdrawn number 10 role in which he thrived.

Following Carrick's appointment, he scored 25 of his 29 goals and helped Boro to the Championship play-offs, but a knee injury and the speculation surrounding his future meant he did not feature for the club this season.

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