MICHAEL Carrick insists Josh Coburn remains part of his Middlesbrough plans amid transfer interest from Millwall.

Neil Harris is desperate to bolster his forward line and the Lions have identified Coburn as a leading target, with other clubs understood to be keeping an eye on the striker's situation.

But Carrick says Boro haven't received any offers for Coburn, who has impressed in training and was superb in last week's Carabao Cup victory at Leeds United.

"Josh is the same as everyone else from my perspective," said Boro's head coach.

"There’s nothing and he’s one of us. He’s in a good place - he looks fit, looks strong and he looks hungry to play more football and be dangerous, so there’s nothing from my point of view.

"Speculation is what it is. All sorts flies around about all sorts of players. That’s just something we learn to live with and not get too hyped up with."

The arrival of Tommy Conway last week sparked the Coburn uncertainty, with the Bristol City striker the fifth senior arrival this summer, with Boro having also signed impressive teenage defender Harley Hunt.

Boro's final priority in the transfer window is a left-back, with work on that front ongoing.

Alex Bangura's injury means Lukas Engel is Boro's only senior left-back option, though George McCormick has enjoyed an impressive summer breakthrough - and Carrick insists he's calm and there'll be no panic at Rockliffe in the final week of the window.

He said: “It’s the transfer window. Surprises come up. I’m really happy with the squad and have said that many times when sitting here.

"Things can get thrown at you that is sometimes out of our control, so for me to sit here and say everything is finished would be a little bit silly, but, for sure, at the moment we’re really happy.

"We’re always trying to improve and look for things that are out there, but we’re not desperate by any stretch. We’ve got an open mind to see what’s out there. If we can improve and make a little step further then great.

"A week is a long time in football but there will be a lot of work going into that to see if we can make ourselves even better. We’re certainly not anxious about it though. We’re excited about trying to improve, but we’re not desperate or chasing anything because I think we’re in a decent place. We know what we’ve got and what the players are capable of.

"We know what we’re happy with and what we’re trying to improve on. I don’t get carried away with what’s being said. That’s the beauty of the transfer window - everything is excited and wants more, more, more. For us, we’ve got to take a step back from that. Where we are in the moment, we’re happy."

Boro are looking to bounce back from their frustrating Derby defeat when Portsmouth visit the Riverside on Saturday, with Riley McGree a doubt having missed the game at Pride Park. Jonny Howson could also be missing again but Carrick is hopeful Rav van den Berg will be fit to feature with the Dutchman having sat out of the club's open training session earlier this week.

Carrick said: “Through the season, you get some lads who are injured and might have to miss the odd training session here and there. There wasn’t loads to look into there and we’ve got a good squad so we can manage the ups and downs of that. Rav finished the game last week but did have a little issue towards the end of the game.

"We’ve managed him this week and we’ll then see how he is tomorrow (Friday) in terms of moving forward with that one. We’re hopeful. Jonny is similar and Riley is similar too. Darragh (Lenihan) and Dael (Fry) are a little bit further down the line.

“Lukas (Engel) had a problem with his wrist - he fractured it - but there’s no problem there. He’ll be alright.”