And there’s been a few times over the course of the last couple of months that the discussion hasn’t just focused on what happened on the pitch but what could be heard from the stands.
‘George Edmundson, ole, ole’, is the chant.
“Every time I ring my dad after a game he’ll say ‘George, I’ve recorded them singing your name again’,” the defender laughs.
“He loves it and my mum does. They buzz off it!
“I don’t think I’ve really ever had a song before. I think I had ‘he’s one of our own’ at Oldham but this is my first proper song, so I’m really chuffed about it.”
And Edmundson was chuffed to make his Boro deal permanent last month.
The defender impressed during his loan stint in the first half of the season and admits the uncertainty surrounding his future was “stressful” when he was recalled by Ipswich in January.
But thankfully for Edmundson, a permanent deal with Boro was soon agreed.
“I’ve only been here half a season but after my first week it was like I’d known the lads for four or five years or grown up with them,” says the 28-year-old.
“They helped me settle in and now coming back we just picked up where we left off.
“All the lads have been really great with me, the staff and the management. And I’ve played a lot of games and as a footballer that’s what you want. It feels like the right fit for me to kick on now.”
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With his future resolved after his permanent arrival, Edmundson returned to the Boro starting XI for Monday’s game against Sunderland, replacing Dael Fry.
After Matt Clarke’s January departure, Michael Carrick opted against bringing in a fourth centre-half, leaving Edmundson, Fry and Rav van den Berg to compete for the two starting spots.
“Rav and Dael are top centre-halves, really, really good, so we’ll battle it out, we’ll push each other,” said Edmundson.
“That competition is really good. It’s good if you have good characters fighting for the same position. The lads are great, no matter who is playing and who isn’t, we support each other.
“It’s a bit like a goalkeeper’s union, we’re all together and feed off each other. We all know we can bring different things to the team.”
Boro now need to get back on track. Carrick’s side have lost four of their last five games in all competitions and have a tough trip to Sheffield United next on Wednesday night.
For Edmundson, the aim is still clear.
“Obviously get promoted, that’s our goal here,” he said.
“But also just to improve really. I work a lot with Woody, me and him get on really well. And even though defensively we should have had more clean sheets, for whatever reason moments in games haven’t gone our way.
“But if you do watch my individual performances from when I first started to now, I feel like I’ve really improved defensively, I feel like I’ve taken my game to a new level.
“I want to keep improving and be the best version of myself and hopefully that helps the team win more games.”
