Matthew Hoppe completes transfer from Mallorca to Middlesbrough

Middlesbrough have completed the signing of American forward Matthew Hoppe from Mallorca, the club announced Wednesday.

Hoppe arrives on a long-term contract for a fee believed to be in the region of $3.6m (£3M), potentially rising to $6.1m (£5m) with add-ons.

The 21-year-old only signed for Los Piratas in August 2021 following FC Schalke’s relegation from the Bundesliga. Despite the German side’s struggles, Hoppe enjoyed a breakout campaign with five goals in his first seven senior appearances and six strikes in 22 games across the entire 2020/21 season.

That was enough to tempt Mallorca to part with €3.5m for his services. Since then, however, Hoppe has struggled, making just seven appearances, notching one assist but failing to find the net.

As revealed by 90min in July, clubs from across Europe had been showing interest in taking Hoppe on loan, should the forward wish to leave Mallorca in order to secure more regular minutes.

Despite strong interest from a number of MLS clubs, Middlesbrough emerged as the frontrunner for Hoppe’s signature, as reported by 90min. After a long negotiation process, an agreement was reached, with Hoppe completing a medical on Tuesday.

Hoppe – whose career started in the LA Galaxy youth system – joins fellow American Zack Steffen at the Riverside Stadium.

A source with knowledge of the situation tells 90min Hoppe is excited to prove himself in England, with his prime focus now scoring enough goals to make Gregg Berhalter’s USMNT roster for the 2022 World Cup.

To date, Hoppe has six senior caps for the United States, scoring once during the Stars and Stripes’ successful Concacaf Gold Cup campaign last summer.