TONY PULIS insists there are “no definites” when it comes to the futures of Ben Gibson and Adama Traore, knowing that during the final two weeks of the window Middlesbrough could be faced with having to replace the two key men – even if they don’t want to.

Pulis has targets in mind to strengthen the Boro squad before the trip to Millwall on August 4 but a lot could change if there are suddenly huge moves from the Premier League for either Gibson or Traore.

There is also a chance that striker Britt Assombalonga could be sold if his valuation is met, with West Brom known to one of those keen if they can come up with the correct deal.

While Middlesbrough have their own valuations, the key thing with Traore is that Middlesbrough will not be able to do much about it if a release clause – thought to be around the £18m mark – was met and he wanted to go.

The 22-year-old has become the main source of creativity and pace over the last seven months and Pulis does not want to lose him, hearing Wolves are ready to test the water for a deal.

Traore played the full 90 minutes and scored a decent goal during the 4-3 defeat at Accrington Stanley on Saturday, Pulis said: “I think you've seen him work his socks off, gets stuck in, score – there's nothing clouding his mind at the moment his attitude was first class again. Obviously I've got a soft spot for the kid.”

Asked if anything was close, Pulis replied: “Nah, nah, nah … well we can't fight it off, if it's going to happen it's going to happen, so he's a terrific lad and someone who I've got the time for and a lot of respect for.”

To still have Traore and Gibson, known to be interesting Everton and Southampton among others even if offers have not arrived so far, at this stage of the summer is a boost, but Pulis admits he will not be taking their presence for granted.

“I think everybody is relieved that's the case,” said Pulis. “But football's football, you're at a football club who have sold players before, that's what happens and you can accept it and the important thing is to find players who can come in and replace if they do go.”

He added: “We'll see what happens, like I say there's no definites in football, what we've got do is make sure is if we lose players, then we bring good ones in because that's important for everybody at the football club.

“Everybody understands and respects Steve's (Gibson) view of the football club and what he wants to achieve so hopefully it will be an interesting two weeks.

“I think usually the best deals are done at the end of the window not during the window. I think we've got good signings in Paddy McNair and Aden Flint and they were done because the prices were right. If they weren't right we would have left it until the last weeks to see if we can get the right prices.

“But we thought they were good prices so we paid the money. But there have been other ones that we've spoke about and tried and we thought the prices were ridiculous. I won't be doing that.”

McNair and Flint played at Accrington and showed plenty of encouraging signs during an afternoon which, overall, was largely disappointing from a Middlesbrough point of view.

Pulis insisted it was more about fitness than the result, although he was frustrated by the number of individual errors that will need to be eradicated before the trip to Millwall.

By then he will hope to have a few new faces in. Bristol City defender Joe Bryan and West Brom winger Matt Phillips are two of those under serious consideration, while he would still like Everton midfielder Mo Besic back on Teesside.

Pulis, whose side face Rochdale on Tuesday, would also like to add his own striker and the latest forward credited with the club is Icelandic striker Vidar Orn Kjartansson.  He could need the extra option if Rudy Gestede is ruled out for a lengthy period. He had to be withdrawn at the Wham Stadium after falling over and injuring both ankles so is being assessed.

By the time Gestede had gone off, McNair had slotted in his first for the club after he controlled and finished Stewart Downing’s long ball. It was the sort of run from midfield into the area Pulis has signed him for.

“We needed more goals in the team and I still think we need more goals in the team,” said the Middlesbrough boss. “There's not enough goals at the moment so we need somebody that's going get ten goals from midfield and Paddy, fingers crossed, will be the one that can do that.

“He's got great energy, I think you've seen that, he can get box to box and make really intelligent runs off the back of people. I was really pleased with him in a lot of respects but the disappointing thing is he's got to sharpen that finishing up.

“People will look at me and say 'he isn't going to score that many', but he got a goal and really and truthfully he could have scored four goals. They are all in the box, clean strikes in the box.”

After Accrington had equalised through Mark Hughes’ head after some poor goalkeeping from Darren Randolph, Billy Kee made amends for an earlier missed penalty by making no mistake from a second with ten minutes remaining of the opening half.

Then Middlesbrough were 3-1 down at break when Kayden Jackson latched on to a loose ball after some poor defending and picked out former Accrington loan man Randolph’s bottom corner Middlesbrough recovered to level in the second half courtesy of a 25-yard screamer from Jonny Howson and then a fine individual effort from Traore. Accrington, though, still managed to hit the winner with three minutes left when Ross Sykes finished off Hughes’ header across goal. 

Accrington (4-4-2): Maxted; Johnson, Hughes, Richards-Everton (Sykes 46), Donancien (Wood 65); Clark (Finley 57), Conneely (Nolan 57), Brown (Sousa 57), McConville (Mingoia 57); Kee (Williams 63), Jackson (Trialist 46). Subs (not used): Savin.  

Middlesbrough (4-3-2-1): Randolph; Shotton, Flint, Gibson, Friend; Clayton, McNair, Howson (Bamford 72); Traore, Downing (Leadbitter 72); Gestede (Assombalonga 24). Subs: Konstantopoulos (gk), Fry, Wood, De Sart, Wing, Johnson, Chapman, Fletcher.