The North Yorkshire outfit have failed to win any of their last five Championship games, but sit 11th in the table, well clear of the relegation zone.
With safety guaranteed, Middlesbrough manager Warnock has started planning for next season and is looking at the Premier League loan market to bolster his squad.
Looking ahead to the transfer window, Warnock has expressed his desire to bring Newcastle midfielder and Arsenal loan star Willock to the Riverside, but admitted that he is beyond Boro’s reach.
The 72-year-old also suggested that the Tyneside-based club would have to pay as much as £20m to sign Willock permanently from Arsenal in the summer.
“The real top ones of the 19 or 20-year-olds, they’re probably going to get higher up than us“, Warnock was quoted as saying by Teeside Live.
“I don’t mean that disrespectfully, but clubs in the Premier League will want them.
“Look at Willock at Newcastle – I like him, but he’s probably going to go for about £20m if they get him.
“The top ones are beyond us, so we have to look a little bit below or for someone we can nurture.“
Willock has made nine Premier League appearances for Newcastle since joining on loan in February while scoring three goals in the process.
