New EFL signing immediately forced to clarify ‘stepping stone’ comment amid backlash

Middlesbrough signing Radek Vitek has been forced to explain a comment made during his first interview after his transfer.

Vitek signed for Boro from Manchester United on Friday, but he said that the move was a ‘new stepping stone’ for him.

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His wording led to some backlash from fans online, as they questioned his mentality regarding the switch.

Typically, the phrase ‘a stepping stone’ relates to a player using a smaller club solely as a route to join a bigger team in the future, rather than planning to stay for a long time.

After Middlesbrough posted a video of Vitek’s first interview as their new signing on Saturday, supporters flooded the replies.

One Boro supporter replied on X: “Don’t love how he has just called us a stepping stone.”

Another questioned: “Did he just say stepping stone…”

“Lad really said ‘new stepping stone’ Jesus. Welcome to the club, I guess,” a third Boro fan posted.

But some fans jumped to Vitek’s defence and pointed out a language barrier that could have impacted the Czech star.

“I think he means ‘next step in my career’ having listened to it a few times,” another Middlesbrough supporter said. “Easy to mix up sayings when it’s someone’s second language.”

‘Not meant in any negative way’

And just a few hours after Vitek’s first interview was posted and he faced some backlash, he spoke out on the matter.

“I wanted to clarify what I meant by ‘stepping stone’,” the goalkeeper wrote, explaining his words on his X account.

“I just want to assure everyone that I have not meant that in any negative way.

“The point of this comment was that this is a very important step in my career going forward.

“I can’t wait to get started.”

Off to a controversial start

Vitek won’t have wanted any controversy to begin his time as a Middlesbrough player, but he has now cleared things up.

The 22-year-old has joined the club from Man United after spending the last six years with the Red Devils.

He spent last season on loan at Bristol City in the Championship, following other loans in the EFL and Austria.

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Vitek was named Bristol City’s Player of the Year after an impressive campaign – and now he’s back in the second tier.

Away from his ‘stepping stone’ comments in his first interview as a Boro player, he also said: “It feels great to be here.

“This is a new challenge for me and I’m really excited to be a Boro player.

“The project here is very impressive, because you can clearly see the ambition and where the club wants to go.

“I’m delighted to now be part of that.”