Middlesbrough interim manager Adi Viveash believes Riley McGree has the potential to play a key role for the club this season, now that the Australian midfielder has returned to full fitness. On his first day at Boro, Viveash sent a clear message to McGree, expressing both his admiration for the player’s talent and his belief in his abilities.
McGree has had a difficult two years at Middlesbrough, with injuries disrupting his rhythm and limiting his appearances. While on foreign service recently, he spoke openly about his challenges and expressed hope that those frustrating periods would be behind him. He made his first start of the season in Boro’s win against Birmingham and then began for Australia during the international break.
Although Viveash has had little time to work closely with McGree owing to a pre-season injury, he used his prior understanding of the 27-year-old’s ability to provide an optimistic first-day message. “I told Riley from day one that he was always the kind of player who frustrated me whenever he played against our teams because of the timing of his runs,” Viveash told the newspaper. “I’ve already worked with players like Jamie Allen at Coventry who had the capacity to arrive in dangerous situations. Riley has an excess of that. “He’s one of the best I’ve ever seen.”
Viveash emphasized McGree’s technical abilities and aptitude for scoring and assisting goals from midfield, which make him an extremely important player. “It’s been a challenging period for him, but he was exceptional in pre-season, probably the standout performer in those first couple of weeks,” Viveash told reporters. “I had seen his quality before, and Rob [Edwards] had coached against him, but being up close demonstrates how well he finds space and his technical ability. He can score, create, and play a significant role in contests.”
The management acknowledged that McGree’s progress had been hampered by injuries. He used the Birmingham game as an example, in which McGree was brilliant in the first 20 minutes but suffered when the club had to change formation owing to further injuries. “I felt sorry for him since he started off so well, and we had based our approach around him. He was as elusive as we had hoped, and he might develop into a vital player for us alongside others at the club,” Viveash continued.
Looking ahead, Viveash underlined the necessity of constant training to assist McGree stay fit and perform well. “We need to guarantee Riley can train consistently so he can play more matches. “The more game time he gets, the fitter he becomes, and the more he contributes to Middlesbrough’s success,” he remarked.
McGree’s return to club play against Birmingham, followed by a start for Australia in a loss to Colombia, represented his first appearances of the year. He returned to Teesside late last week, but with a big game against Coventry City approaching in midweek, it’s unclear whether he’ll be risked this weekend.
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