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Max Arfsten availability and injury update ahead of Middlesbrough's clash with Wrexham Middlesbrough injury update ahead of the clash with Wrexham in the Carabao Cup Max Arfsten is likely to be one of four Middlesbrough debutants on Friday evening against Wrexham. The USA international joined Boro earlier this week and Kim Hellberg confirmed he will go straight into the squad for the Carabao Cup clash at the Riverside. With Kyle Joseph also back in full training this week, he too is expected to be involved, though roles from the bench are most likely for both Arfsten and Joseph. But with Hellberg clear he wants to win the game to take positivity into the new season, the expectation is that Will Lankshear and Sebastian Berhalter both start, while Myles Peart-Harris will miss out as he targets next week for his return from injury. Arfsten has the advantage of being a lot sharper than his team-mates. He completed half of the MLS campaign before then being a part of the USA squad for the World Cup. When the MLS season restarted last month, the 25-year-old played two games for Columbus Crew as well as 45 minutes for the MLS All Stars. On Arfsten’s availability against Wrexham, Hellberg confirmed: “Max will be in the squad. He did his first session with us on Tuesday afternoon, so he hasn’t done much in terms of that. “But he’s done some sessions and we’ve worked a lot with him with theory and the analysts, and everything around that. You can see why we have chased him for a long time. “There’s a lot of qualities in him, and I’m looking forward to seeing him. That’s where you have to use this game in the best way. “I think he’s more in-season than some of the other players that have arrived, which means he’s closer to a physical state where he actually can play. “Then, it’s just a case of making a decision about what’s the best way for him to get as much as possible out of the game. He will absolutely be involved in the game.” As for the availability of injured players, Boro had a number of people missing from last weekend’s friendly with Espanyol, with only Joseph and Alfie Jones - who both started full training this week - in contention for potential returns on Friday. “The nature of the game means not taking any unnecessary risks with any players,” Hellberg said of the cup game, which isn’t as big a priority as the Championship kick-off next weekend. “That’s the balance. We will try to do everything we can to try to win the game, but you also need to balance some things and maybe don’t take a risk that you might have taken if it was a week further down the line. “Myles will start training on Monday next week, and David [Strelec] is just around the corner too. For us in general, there’s a lot of players that will start again on Monday but that will not be involved in this game. Kyle will probably be in the squad though.” ------------- 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.