MIDDLESBROUGH are confident of confirming the £12m capture of Dutch midfielder Marten de Roon before the end of the week, and continue to hold a strong interest in Belgian full-back Thomas Meunier.

De Roon will complete a medical within the next 24 hours as he puts the finishing touches to his proposed move from Italian side Atalanta.

The defensive midfielder was given permission to discuss terms with the Teessiders yesterday, and is set to secure a significant increase in wages when he puts pen to paper on a four-year deal with Boro.

The 25-year-old was on Boro’s radar during his three years with Dutch side Heerenveen, but Boro’s status as a Championship club meant they were not in a position to make a move when he swapped Holland for Serie A in 2015.

However, he was always regarded as one of Aitor Karanka’s key summer targets in the aftermath of promotion, and his arrival should be rubber-stamped ahead of the start of Boro’s pre-season training schedule next week.

His arrival will place considerable pressure on Grant Leadbitter and Adam Clayton, who filled the defensive-midfield roles in Karanka’s preferred 4-2-3-1 formation in the vast majority of matches last season.

Clayton was widely regarded as one of the best midfielders in the Championship, while Leadbitter has been one of Karanka’s most trusted lieutenants in his role as captain. However, unless Boro’s head coach makes a tactical switch next season, one of the two midfielders will have to make way to accommodate de Roon.

De Roon will become Boro’s third signing of the summer, following winger Viktor Fischer and defender Bernardo Espinosa, and Karanka is hoping to make at least three or four more additions before the start of the season.

Meunier is a leading target, although there is an acceptance that any talks over the full-back will have to wait until Belgium have completed their efforts at Euro 2016.

Meunier, who plays with Belgian side Club Brugge, has been a key figure in Marc Wilmots’ team, and impressed again on Sunday as Belgium cruised to a 4-0 win over Hungary.

The 24-year-old is understood to have a €6m release clause in his current deal, which Boro are hoping to trigger once this summer’s tournament in France is at an end.

However, they are not the only club to have expressed an interest, with Italian side Napoli also having been in contact with Club Brugge officials.

Karanka is keen to sign a new right-back this summer, with Emilio Nsue having filled the position for much of last season, even though he started his Boro career in midfield. Tomas Kalas, who also featured last term, has returned to Chelsea following the end of his loan spell.

Boro’s head coach is also looking at a number of goalkeeping options, with Victor Valdes and Brad Guzan both under consideration after another target, Matz Sels, opted to join Newcastle United.

Meanwhile, Boro have released ticket details for their opening pre-season friendly at York City on July 9. The Teessiders have been allocated 1,000 tickets for the game at Bootham Crescent, with prices set at £12 for adults, £6 for under-16s, students and over-65s, and under-5s being admitted free.