Michael Carrick's message to Anfernee Dijksteel as he explains 'harsh' Middlesbrough decision

Anfernee Dijksteel is pictured arriving
-Credit: (Image: MI News/NurPhoto)


Michael Carrick has told Anfernee Dijksteel he will have plenty more opportunities to play for Middlesbrough this season, as he explained why he dropped the full-back at West Brom.

Despite a solid start to the season and another reliable display in Saturday's 2-0 victory over Stoke City, Dijksteel dropped out of the Boro side on Tuesday evening as they beat league leaders West Brom 1-0 at the Hawthorns. The decision was ultimately to accommodate the return of Rav van den Berg, with Luke Ayling moving back to his more natural right-back role.

Explaining why he made the decision, which he described as harsh, Carrick said: “It was harsh on Anf not to play because he’s done so well in the games he’s played this season. Sometimes, I’ve got to make decisions that I don’t necessarily like making, and that was definitely one of them.

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"But there were going to be balls coming into the box and we expected to have to deal with crosses, which is why he felt it would suit Rav. I spoke to Anf about that before the game, which is standard. I speak to all the players if they’re coming out the team for whatever reason.

"It certainly wasn’t an easy decision but there will be plenty of football for Anf, as well as everyone else, over the course of the season. The squad is massively important and I think that showed towards the end of the game tonight.

"All the subs coming on at the end serving a real purpose. Izzy I thought was superb when he came on in those crucial last few moments. It’s fantastic to have everyone chipping in and, I keep stressing it, over time, we’re going to need everyone chipping in."

In the end, Carrick's decision proved the right one, with Van den Berg superb alongside Goerge Edmundson to defend the Boro goal from many West Brom crosses from wide areas. It was Van den Berg's first start for Boro since the defeat at Derby County at the start of the season.

Having been tipped to leave Boro in the summer as he enters the final 12 months of his contract though, Dijksteel has shown immense character to channel game-time frustrations in the right way. Using Boro's defensive injury woes to his advantage, the Suriname international has had a really positive start to the season.