FOR Sammy Silvera, everything about the summer move to Middlesbrough just felt right.

After a brilliant breakout season in his homeland with Central Coast Mariners, Silvera was very much in-demand but as he considered his many options at the start of the summer, everything was pointing to Teesside.

On the pitch, he was well aware of the progress made by Michael Carrick's side last season and, despite the fact Boro came up just short in their bid to win promotion, the direction in which they're heading. The dressing room presence of his countryman Riley McGree helped, too.

And off the pitch, there were also factors that contributed to his decision. Silvera wanted to be closer to his mum, who lives in London, which effectively ruled out the Asian clubs who were interested in the winger.

He was excited by the Boro switch when the opportunity presented itself and the promising early signs in pre-season have only served to strengthen Silvera's belief that he's in the right place.

"I've moved to a great league and a great team who were nearly promoted to the Premier League last year," he says.

"My hope now is that we can push on and achieve that this year."

Silvera arrived at Boro on the back of a superb season, scoring eight goals and adding six assists on the way to helping Mariners win the A-League Championship. And he's carried that momentum into pre-season.

Head coach Carrick this week told of how impressed he's been by "dangerous" Silvera, who scored his second goal of the summer in the draw at Bradford and has staked a strong claim to be in the starting XI when the real stuff starts against Millwall a week today.

“Last season I feel like I had a really good season," says Silvera.

"There is so much support over there (in Australia), but equally they encourage their own players to go overseas and push the limits to try and do well. Australia is a growing league, but obviously you can’t turn down a move to the Championship. Everyone’s goal is to reach the highest level possible. This is a great place to learn and develop and the Championship is an unbelievable league."

Silvera is only 22 but his career so far hasn't been without its difficulties. In 2020, he left his homeland to join Paços de Ferreira in Portugal, but the move didn't work out.

“Portugal was a difficult time in my career," he says.

"I was out for six months. I had four and a half months out with an injury, just got back to fitness and then caught covid straight away.

"It was a difficult period, especially moving away from home at 19. But I think it was a huge learning curve for me. I was able to take experiences both on and off the pitch and learn from them.

"I feel I took those experiences back to Australia, showed there what I can do again, and I feel like that’s what’s got me the move here."

READ MORE:

He arrived with fellow Aussie Tom Glover, and both were in contact with McGree, who acted like something of a Boro salesman in the weeks leading up to the move.

"Obviously I knew Riley before coming as well and he speaks so highly of the club, so it make it an easy decision once I spoke to him," said Silvera, who could make his first Riverside appearance this afternoon when Boro host Auxerre in their final friendly of the summer (3pm).

"He was messaging throughout the summer and telling me how well he’s done and how much he’s enjoyed it here, so it became a no-brainer for me really once I got all the information that I did.

"I’ve got Nectarios Triantis just up the road as well (at Sunderland). We were roommates for a bit at Central Coast Mariners. He’s a great talent as well, and hopefully I get to see him on the pitch."