MARTEN DE ROON will complete his move to Middlesbrough early next week when he teams up with his new teammates for the first time ahead of playing in the Premier League.

The Boro squad will return to Rockliffe Park on Monday for pre-season training and Aitor Karanka hopes the centre-midfielder will be available to take part in the sessions once the €14m deal goes through.

He will be part of a playing staff eager to get back to work ahead of the Premier League return, with former captain Matthew Bates confident Middlesbrough can make an impact on the big stage next season.

Bates, now with Hartlepool, left the Riverside in 2012 after spending eight years as part of the first team pool of players, many of which were in the Premier League before relegation in 2009.

But the 29-year-old is convinced things are being done right and he thinks young defender Ben Gibson can really make his mark at the higher level.

“It has all changed at Boro since my days but I still keep in touch with Ben Gibson occasionally, I always wind him up and say I nurtured him to where he is now,” said Bates.

“You could see when he was a kid coming through, he was probably a first-team scholar when I was in the first team, and he was a leader then.

“You could just see it in him. I'm not surprised by how well he has done. I haven't seen that many games as we play at the same time but by all accounts he is a leader on the pitch and there is even talk of him possibly being in the England fold at some stage.

"He is a lad that will work hard and I am sure he will have a great season.”

Karanka is an ambitious and forward thinking manager so he will not be looking for Middlesbrough to just make up the numbers at the higher level; he will want them to finish as highly as they can.

They have already landed Danish winger Viktor Fischer from Ajax and defender Bernado Espinosa from Sporting Gijon, with de Roon the next on the arrivals list provided there are no hiccups over the medical or the contract he is set to sign.

"I think Boro can do well,” said Bates. “They need to make a few signings still and I am sure they will do, especially with the money up there now.

"It is all about the start, in any league but especially the Premier League. If you can get a good start then they will do well. I will be watching them whenever I can and hoping they do well."

The details of de Roon’s contract is thought to have been agreed, with suggestions in Italy that it will be worth £1m a year over four years. Middlesbrough have not confirmed such details.

The 25-year-old had been expected earlier in the week, but sources close to Middlesbrough claim it will be next week when he finalises the move from Atalanta.