Morgan Whittaker has left Middlesbrough to sign for MLS side Colorado Rapids.
Whittaker, 25, joined Boro in January 2025 for £5m from Plymouth Argyle and scored 14 goals in 66 games.
He ended last season as Boro’s top scorer, but the forward has now left for the United States for an undisclosed fee on a three-year contract, with the MLS club holding the option for a further year.
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He will take up one of the Designated Player slots at the Rapids, who are seventh in the Western Conference and managed by Englishman Matt Wells.
Whittaker had played five games for Boro this season, including starting all three Championship matches up to the win against West Bromwich Albion on 29 August.
Boro have brought in 12 new players this summer, including on-loan Brighton winger Amario Cozier-Duberry, who was signed on deadline day.
Whittaker moved to the Riverside halfway through the 2024-25 season, with Middlesbrough having fought off competition to sign him.
But he failed to score in any of the 16 matches he played as Michael Carrick’s side fell out of play-off contention on the final day of the season.
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That drought had stretched to 25 games and had seen him cheered off the field in one match at Preston North End when he was substituted.
He broke his duck in a win over Ipswich Town and proceeded to score eight times in 12 games, including a run of six consecutive matches, and ended as Boro’s top scorer for the campaign as their hopes of Premier League football were dashed in the play-offs.
