Robson to leave Middlesbrough in the summer (From The Northern Echo)

Robson to leave Middlesbrough in the summer

8:00am Friday 17th February 2012 in Middlesbrough By Scott Wilson

BARRY Robson will leave Middlesbrough at the end of the season to join Canadian Major League Soccer side Vancouver Whitecaps.

Robson will make the shock move across the Atlantic when his current deal expires in the summer, regardless of what division Boro are playing in next season.

Middlesbrough had the option of extending the 33-year-old midfielder's contract by another year, but felt unable to enter into detailed discussions until they knew whether they would be in the Premier League next term.

As a result, Vancouver officials were able to contact Robson last month and starts talks about a move to North America.

The Scotland international, who joined Middlesbrough from Celtic for £1.5m in January 2010, has subsequently finalised terms and signed a pre-contract agreement with the Whitecaps and will move in July provided he receives international clearance and a visa.

"I've enjoyed my time with Middlesbrough enormously and the move to England has been good for me and for my career," said Robson, who is expected to return from injury in next Tuesday's Championship game at Millwall.

"My immediate priority is to help Boro win promotion to the Premier League, where the club and their supporters deserve to be.

"With the squad we have, there's every chance we can do that, although we all know it's going to be hard with the league being so tight.

"I'd like to wish Tony Mowbray, the club and the fans, who have welcomed me so warmly since I came here, the very best for the future.

"I'm very excited to be joining Whitecaps and to continue my career in Major League Soccer. My family and I are also looking forward to our move to Vancouver.

"But I'll be keeping a very close eye on Boro's fortunes from Canada and they will always have a special place in my heart."

Robson took time to settle after signing for his former Celtic boss, Gordon Strachan, but the Scotland international has gradually become one of the most influential performers in the Middlesbrough squad.

He boasts eight goals from 26 starts this season, and his driving runs from midfield have been badly missed in recent matches.

"Barry has been a proven play maker at the highest levels of the game for both club and country," said Vancouver Whitecaps head coach Martin Rennie.

"He is a versatile box-to-box midfielder that can play in several positions, with the ability to create and score goals. Barry will be a great addition to our squad."

Robson's departure will leave a considerable hole for the Teessiders to fill, especially if they are unable to win promotion in the next three months.

However, he is currently one of the highest-paid players on the club's books, and the removal of his wages from the wage bill should provide Mowbray with some much-needed transfer leeway in the summer.

The timing of yesterday's agreement with Vancouver Whitecaps is somewhat strange, but Boro officials are quietly confident that his commitment will not waver in the remainder of the campaign.

Robson is one of a number of players approaching the end of their contract - Matthew Bates, Tony McMahon and Justin Hoyte are all due to become free agents in the summer - but it is not thought that anyone else is close to agreeing a move away from Middlesbrough.

Mowbray has been aware of Robson's possible departure for a while now, but has always been determined to hold on to the midfielder for the remainder of the current campaign no matter what was to transpire in the summer.

In the more immediate term, he remains keen to strengthen his squad via the loan market, and his room for manoeuvre increased this week when Stephen McManus joined Bristol City.

From today onwards, anyone joining Middlesbrough will be eligible for a 93-day period incorporating the whole of the play-offs, and Mowbray is hoping to make progress before Tuesday's game at the New Den.

"We've been busy searching for players every day since the window shut last month, to be honest," said the Boro boss. "It's not easy, you can't just bring footballers in for the sake of it. They have to balance the squad and help the team.

"We continue that search. I would like to think that when we bring someone in, people go, 'Wow, he ain't bad'.

"Rather than someone nobody has ever heard of, someone who isn't any better than what we've already got.

"Why wouldn't I rather play Cameron Park, Curtis Main or Luke Williams than some young boy from Liverpool or Manchester United?"