Middlesbrough manager Aitor Karanka claims Albert Adomah still has a future as a Middlesbrough player despite the winger submitting a transfer request last week.
Adomah was left out of the Boro squad for the second game in succession as the Teessiders moved back into the play-off places with a 3-1 win at Sheffield Wednesday yesterday.
The 27-year-old was involved in a dressing-room altercation with Karanka in the wake of last weekend's 1-0 home defeat to Bristol City, with the Boro head coach reacting furiously to Adomah's assistance that he should have been in the starting line-up against his former club.
Despite the row, Karanka continues to insist the midfielder remains a valued part of the squad.
However, despite the Spaniard's comments, it is still anticipated that Adomah will move elsewhere before the transfer window closes on Tuesday.
Karanka said: "The club thinks the same things that I have been thinking all week. Albert Adomah is our player, and Albert Adomah knows how important he is to us.
"His numbers from last season are there for everybody to see. We have to keep going and see what happens. The more important people are the people who were here today and we have to keep growing together."
Adomah's non-appearance at Hillsborough was expected after Thursday's submission of a formal transfer request, but Atdhe Nuhui's absence from Sheffield Wednesday's starting line-up was much more of a surprise given that he had scored in both of last season's games with Middlesbrough.