Middlesbrough were in talks with Bristol City to sell the forward before changing their mind
Delano Burgzorg of Middlesbrough applauds the fans(Image: Ryan Browne/Shutterstock)
Bristol City boss Gerhard Struber has told of his disappointment after missing out on signing Middlesbrough forward Delano Burgzorg.
The Robins had been pushing to sign the 27-year-old this month, with initial signs being that Boro were willing to part with the forward as they looked to trim their squad and strengthen with signings from elsewhere.
They now look set to complete a move to sign Jeremy Sarmiento from Brighton after resurrecting their interest as Birmingham City tried to hijack a deal.
But their attempts to sign a striker have so far proven frustrating, with this January market proving a difficult one, with few options proving viable. As such, Boro made the decision to keep Burgzorg, before he justified the decision with a dramatic late winner at West Brom last Friday.
That ends Bristol City’s pursuit of the versatile forward, with their boss Struber left frustrated after what he called an investment of a lot of time to try and convince Burgzorg of the move. It’s understood he preferred a Boro stay.
Asked about the deal collapsing, Struber told BBC Radio Bristol: “It’s a shame but it’s not always in our hand. We were super close, everything was negotiated in a really good way but we get the stop signs from Middlesbrough.
“That’s the reality in our world so I am not happy with that. Really disappointed, especially when you invest so much time with a player and convince this player to jump out maybe from a promotion club to us and I am really disappointed that we don’t finalise this transfer.”
Burgzorg will now hope to use his West Brom goal to springboard a Boro career that has so far blown hot and cold in his 18 months at the Riverside so far. He came off the bench at half time at Stoke City on Wednesday evening and though he didn’t score this time, he made an impact to help Boro come from behind to win.
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