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Sontje Hansen latest as reason for Middlesbrough forward's Wrexham absence is explained Sontje Hansen did not make the squad on Friday evening Sontje Hansen missed Middlesbrough’s Carabao Cup clash with Wrexham in order to play more minutes for the Under-21s. While his absence was not understood to be related to a Boro exit, it’s understood that he would be allowed to leave if an offer deemed acceptable was made. Hansen was a notable absentee from the squad on Friday evening, as Will Lankshear scored the only goal to send Boro into the second round. Boro boss Kim Hellberg confirmed after that the forward was not injured, and the decision was instead made for him to play hours earlier for Mark Tinkler’s side against Sheffield United in order to get more minutes. It was a bid to boost Hansen’s fitness after he returned late for pre-season after representing Curacao at this summer’s World Cup. Explaining the absence, Hellberg said: “Sontje was not here. It was no injury. He played a game [for the U21s] on Friday, because we looked at his physics. “It was a little bit the same thing that we talked about before the game: we had to do as much as we could for everyone because we're still in the pre-season stage. “We wanted to get as much as possible out of this weekend. There were different possibilities and he’s ready to go next week.” Hansen’s absence comes after a first season of struggle on Teesside. He admitted himself at the end of last term that he hadn’t played as much as he’d wanted to. But also spoke with determination to try and prove his worth this summer. But with forward options strengthened during the transfer window, and with Boro needing to trim squad numbers, Hansen is understood to be one of the players who could leave this summer. But until a move materialises, Hellberg insisted that the 24-year-old would remain in his thinking, and would get opportunities if he earned them. “He's here and he's training,” the Boro boss said when asked if he had a future. “He came back late because of the World Cup, which means that he is a little bit behind with his physics and fitness. “That’s why together we made that decision to try to play almost 90 minutes in the U21s, instead of maybe playing five here.” ------------- Get Teesside Live Premium now for just £1 HERE – exclusive Boro news and features, transfer notebooks, comment and analysis from Eric Paylor, plus an ad-lite experience Join our WhatsApp community to get all the breaking news and best analysis sent straight to your phone by clicking here to subscribe. Your information will be hidden, you'll only ever receive messages from the Teesside Live sports team, and you can leave any time you like. To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose 'Exit group'. If you’re curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.