NOW that Djed Spence’s long awaited move to Tottenham Hotspur has been confirmed, Middlesbrough trialist Tommy Smith is expected to be offered a permanent deal by the club.

Earlier this month, manager Chris Wilder hinted that Smith, who is a free agent after leaving Stoke City in the summer, will be offered a deal once Spence’s move to Premier League giants Spurs was rubber stamped.

Boro are expected to get a cash windfall of around £15 million with the financial package totalling around £20 million.

The 30-year-old has featured in all three of Boro’s friendly games over the summer and spent the week out with the club as part of their pre-season training camp in Portugal.

Now that Spence will be playing his football elsewhere, Boro need cover in the right-back or right wing-back areas with Isaiah Jones being their first and only choice. Darnell Fisher continues to struggle with a long standing knee injury and he is not expected back until December.

At the beginning of July when discussions were still ongoing over Spence’s exit, Wilder said: “He’s (Smith) someone who’s played in the Premier League, captained in the Premier League, won promotion to the Premier League and played about 400 league games. He’s come in and is training with us.

“He’s someone I’ve known for a long time, and it’s a position where we’re looking to strengthen. Izzy (Jones) had a fantastic season last year, and we’ve still got the ongoing situation with Djed.

“I’ve known Tommy for a while. We’re doing him a little bit of a favour, and at the same time, we’ve got the opportunity to have a look at him as a potential player that could come to us. His CV speaks for itself really, but the situation with Djed is an ongoing one.”

Smith made 200 appearances for Huddersfield Town captaining the side to promotion to the Premier League in 2017 before spending three years with the Potters. He is expected to be part of the squad for tonight’s friendly against League One side Morecambe. Their final friendly game comes this Friday when they welcome Marseille to the Riverside Stadium.

Meanwhile, Zack Steffen’s ongoing move to Boro is expected to be confirmed today with the goalkeeper set to complete a season long loan move from Manchester City.