ONLY one of Middlesbrough’s defenders has started the club’s last five matches, so while Aitor Karanka continues to rotate the majority of his squad members, it is becoming increasingly clear that he views Daniel Ayala as a key part of his strongest selection.

Ayala was Boro’s best player in Saturday’s 2-1 win at Brighton, with his positioning and reading of the game enabling him to mark Sam Baldock out of the match and his aerial ability ensuring the Teessiders were able to repel a series of desperate late crosses into the box.

At the other end of the field, the centre-half displayed the footwork of a winger as he raced down the right-hand side to set up Albert Adomah’s decisive second-half strike, with his slick one-two with Jelle Vossen helping to unlock the Brighton defence.

Kenneth Omeruo has made headlines thanks to his polished early-season performances at the heart of the Boro back four, while Ben Gibson was one of the stars of the show as England Under-21s qualified for the European Championships in Croatia this week. Increasingly, though, it is Ayala who is Middlesbrough’s defensive linchpin.

“Dani is a very good player,” said Karanka. “Since I arrived here, he has improved a lot. I am very happy with him because he is the kind of player who always works very well no matter what he is doing.

“He cares a lot and, if he makes a mistake, he is in a very bad mood. I am happy for him and pleased with the way he is playing, and he deserves all (the praise) he gets.”

Initially signed on loan from Norwich City last November, Ayala completed a permanent move worth around £350,000 in January.

The deal already looks like something of a snip, with the Spaniard displaying the form and consistency that saw both Sevilla and Liverpool court his services as a 17-year-old.

At the time, he chose Liverpool, and while he was unable to establish himself at Anfield despite making five senior appearances, there is every chance he will get another chance to prove himself in the Premier League if he maintains his current rate of development.

“I thought Dani was the Man of the Match, without a doubt,” said Adomah. “His last-minute defending was superb, and he even set me up for the goal.

“I thought he was a winger. When the ball went past me and I saw Dani, I thought, ‘Oh no, what’s he doing out on the wing?’ For him to put the ball in for me to score was great, and he did really well all game.

“Especially at the end, he was clearing out every ball that came into the box. When you have a defender heading the ball and it’s going past the halfway line, it makes it much easier to defend.”