Boro is no stepping stone ... I just wanted me

STRELEC SHOOTS DOWN SLOVAKIAN MEDIA SUGGESTION ABOUT HIS CAREER FUTURE

- By CRAIG JOHNS

DAVID Strelec shut down a suggestion that he can use Middlesbrough as a stepping stone to a bigger club, as he reflected on his move to the Riverside this summer.

A long-term target for Boro, they showed patience throughout the summer to wait for Slovan Bratislava's European adventures to come to an end before finally sealing a late £6.5m move for the striker.

The late move means the Slovakian is still finding his feet in England, and he so far has one goal from his first five appearances.

But things are expected still of Strelec, who had courted plenty of attention before his switch to Boro. In a new interview with Pressko Podcast in Slovakia, the striker insisted he wasn’t looking beyond succeeding at Boro right now, as it was suggested it could be an ideal step to position himself for a big move in the future.

“I feel good right now,” Strelec said. “I’m mainly healthy and with this transfer my career feels like it is going upwards. I'll do everything I can to keep it that way. We'll see [for the future]. I’m not viewing it that way [a stepping stone to a bigger transfer].

“The main priority is to be happy wherever I am, because then you can live better and play better. That's how it was in Slovan.

“I was happy off the pitch, so I was able to perform better on it. I think it would be a mistake to go to Middlesbrough already thinking about a next move.

“That's not a good setup, and I’m just always trying to focus on the next match and winning as many matches as possible. Wherever it works out in the end, it works out. I haven’t gone to Middlesbrough with any expectations as such, but of course, the ambition is to help us get to the Premier League.