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Emotional return for ex-Boro defender

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Former Middlesbrough defender Matthew Bates is set for an emotional return to the Riverside with Bristol City this weekend.

The 25-year-old centre-back is currently on a short-term deal with the Robins after being released by Boro at the end of last season.

He had been recently training with the Teessiders while trying to make a comeback from a fifth cruciate operation but subsequently failed to agree new terms.

“It will be strange going back there,” Stockton-born Bates told the Evening Gazette. “Boro are my hometown club, they’re the team I supported as a boy and I made my professional debut there.

“I captained the team and made over 100 appearances for the club,” he added. “I had a lot of good years there. All my friends and family are big Boro fans too so Saturday will be strange.”

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