Martin Braithwaite and his 5-year journey from Boro flop to Barca's richest star

Martin Braithwaite joined Middlesbrough five years ago this week. He may not have set the world alight during his brief stay on Teesside but since then he has amassed a huge fortune thanks to some canny non-football decisions.

So much so that Braithwaite is now reportedly the richest player at Spanish giants Barcelona - some going, considering he counts the likes of Gerard Pique and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang as high-profile teammates.

It is quite the turnaround for a striker who flattered to deceive when he was in the Championship. He was signed from Toulouse for a fee of £9million in the summer after Boro were relegated from the Premier League. But such was his lack of impact at the Riverside that he was twice loaned out in both his seasons at the club between 2017 and 2019.

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He left with a record of just eight goals and many Boro fans were generally happy that the club got a fee back for the Dane when they sanctioned his departure to Spanish side Leganes. But since then Braithwaite's career has taken an unexpected turn.

His subsequent goalscoring form was nothing out of the ordinary but in February 2020 Barca raised eyebrows by forking out €18 million and handing him a four-and-a-half year contract. Again, his on-field performances have been nothing to write home about with just five goals since his surprise move to the Nou Camp two-and-a-half years ago. He rarely starts for the team now, and last term he made just five outings with his only two appearances in this calendar year being cameos off the bench.

But it is his off-field business involvements which are of most interest to onlookers. It was revealed by Forbes in 2020 that Braithwaite had made a huge amount of money from other investments, aside from his football salary. At the time he was only behind Lionel Messi in the Barcelona squad for overall wealth. Of course Messi ended his long association with Barca last summer and now Braithwaite holds the title of the club's wealthiest player.

Back in 2017 Braithwaite, now 31, invested in a real estate business called NYCE Companies with his uncle Philip Michael. That is said to now be worth over €250m and according to Danish outlet BT the company had 1,500 apartments with 500 more under development.

The striker also owns a clothing line that he runs with his partner Anne-Laure Louis, which is also in rude health. As well as all that, he also owns a restaurant in Barcelona called Gave.

Speaking in an interview with the Philadelphia Inquirer, Braithwaite said: "I always had this American side, and I think maybe that's why my mindset is maybe more American, of dreaming big, doing amazing things, writing goals down.

"In Denmark, we have an amazing system protecting the people. Everyone is good. No one needs anything. In America, it's not really the same thing."