Zack Steffen has had a strange 10 months. It started with a loan move from Manchester City to Middlesbrough and despite joining in July, his career there started with a winless run which lasted until early October. Then, in November, the goalkeeper got the devastating news that he would not be part of the United States squad for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
But now Steffen is back with the USMNT and is undisputed No. 1 at Middlesbrough, where he is a few games away from securing promotion from the Championship to the Premier League. The 28-year-old from Pennsylvania has had plenty of downs over the past year but his season could yet end on a significant high.
Middlesbrough were one point and one place above the relegation zone when Michael Carrick took over as manager in October. The former Manchester United midfielder has overseen a push to fourth, six points clear of fifth-placed Millwall, that has fans talking of a Premier League return for the first time since 2017.
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“You’ve got to dream,” Steffen tells ESPN. “You’ve got to set goals and our goal is to get promoted in whatever way that happens. Football is crazy, life is crazy and I believe whatever will be, will be as long as you put in the hard work. As long as we keep focusing on training and each game, I think we can do it.”
Middlesbrough have five games left, starting with a home clash against Norwich City on Friday (stream LIVE at 3 p.m. ET on ESPN+ in the U.S.). There are still enough points available to pip Sheffield United to the second automatic promotion spot behind Burnley, but it looks likely that Carrick’s team will have to earn a place in the top division through the playoffs.
The Championship playoff final — played at Wembley on May 27 — is often branded “the most valuable game on earth” because of the Premier League riches on offer for the victor. If Middlesbrough win, it would be worth around £170 million, jumping to approximately £300m if they avoid relegation in their first year.
That Middlesbrough are in this position at all is remarkable given where they were when Carrick — taking on his first managerial role after ending his playing career in 2018 — took over when former boss Chris Wilder was sacked.
“He’s very calm, and very clever and smart,” says Steffen when asked about Carrick. “He’s always bringing new exercises and drills into training. He makes things easy to understand and obviously he’s very experienced, so he gets the respect immediately when he walks through the door.
“He brings lots of calmness, positivity and belief and he trusts us as well. He gives us tactics, but he’ll also let us go out there and won’t be screaming at us from the sideline where to play the ball. He trusts us with that and gives us confidence to go out there and get the job done. At the beginning of the season we struggled as a team, we struggled with leadership and guidance, and now we’ve found that it’s been easier just to play, have fun and enjoy everything.”
