Middlesbrough: Sammy Silvera on career so far and Boro move

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.

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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.