MIDDLESBROUGH are set to complete the loan signing of Tottenham youngster Milos Veljkovic later today - but George Friend says he already wouldn’t swap the current Boro squad for any other in the Championship.

Veljkovic, a 19-year-old midfielder, will sign until January on a 93-day emergency loan to help provide cover for Grant Leadbitter, Adam Clayton and Dean Whitehead, who have been filling the two defensive midfield positions between them this season.

The teenager, who spent the first part of the week on international duty with Serbia’s Under-19 side, made his senior Spurs debut in last season’s 5-1 win over Sunderland and becomes the fifth player currently on loan at the Riverside from either Tottenham or Chelsea.

He was involved in Spurs’ Europa League matches against Dnipro and Benfica this season, and his arrival further boosts a Boro squad that has already established itself among the Championship pace-setters.

A win at Brighton on Saturday could potentially take Boro to the top of the table, and while the club might not have the budget of some of the sides that dropped out of the top-flight last season, Friend is adamant he would not swap places with anyone.

“I wouldn’t swap our squad for anyone else’s in the league,” said the full-back. “Both in terms of quality and depth. We’ve had injuries and suspensions, but people have come in and been every bit as good.

“A perfect example is Ryan Fredericks coming in – the lads and fans have loved him for obvious reasons. He’s stepped in for Damia (Abella), who is a massive loss, but Ryan has done brilliantly since he’s come in. We’ve got options everywhere.

“It’s the quality that the manager has brought in that’s made the difference, and the fact that we now have two players for every position. That’s what he always wanted – and he’s got it.

“Maybe the one area where you could say we haven’t quite got two for every position is that central midfield role, but I’m hearing someone might be coming there (Velkjovic). And Rhys (Williams) can also play there when he’s back fit. If everyone’s fit, we have a massive squad and I genuinely wouldn’t swap it for any other.”

In the last few seasons, Boro have generally been blessed with a large number of defensive options, and the club’s defensive record has tended to be one of the strongest in the league.

It is the other end of the pitch that has caused problems, with last season’s run of seven Championship games without a goal highlighting the dearth of attacking options that were available to Aitor Karanka.

The summer arrival of Kike, Patrick Bamford and Jelle Vossen has gone a long way to addressing that, with the likes of Emilio Nsue and Yanic Wildschut also coming in to provide additional firepower from midfield.

“When I look around, I see all these attacking options that perhaps we haven’t had in the past,” said Friend. “We’ve always had good attacking players, but never so many of them. It’s very exciting as a defender because we know that if we keep a clean sheet, we’re likely to be winning the game.

“We just have a real depth now. Look at Yanic – we’ve hardly seen him, but he’s another player the fans are going to love because he’s exciting, powerful and will cause full-backs problems in this league. He’s just someone we haven’t really had to use yet because (Adam) Reach has been so strong.”

The main challenge with such a large squad is to ensure its effective use and guard against players becoming disillusioned because they do not believe they have a chance of appearing in the first team.

Karanka’s preferred policy this season has been to make four or five changes for each game, and while that can lead to instability if the players do not buy into it, results so far suggest the rotation system is proving effective.

If nothing else, the uncertainty over selection keeps each and every member of the squad on their toes, and having been surprisingly omitted for the 1-1 draw with Blackpool last month, Friend admits it is no longer possible to take anything for granted.

“I just try to make sure I’m concentrated because I don’t want to lose my position,” he said. “That’s what this squad threatens now. No one can be complacent because just keeping your place is a challenge.

“Players that might have played every single minute of every single game aren’t doing that now because the manager is resting players and making changes. You have to have your wits about you and make sure you’re training hard every day because it’s very competitive, and that’s brilliant because it’s getting the best out of everyone.”

Meanwhile, Boro youngsters Dael Fry and Junior Mondal have both signed their first professional contracts with the club.