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Boro have today accepted a £3m bid from Bournemouth for out of favour midfield man Lee Tomlin.

Boro chiefs said yesterday that despite speculation they had not been approached.

But the newly promoted Premier League side contacted Boro this morning to make a formal inquiry for the schemer after days of speculation.

And after initial talks and some haggling the Hurworth hierarchy this afternoon accepted the Cherries offer.

Bournemouth have agreed to pay an initial fee of £3m with add-on clauses pushing the package up by another potential £500,000.

The player, who has barely featured in pre-season, is now expected to travel to the South Coast for a medical tomorrow.

And with initial talks between the player’s agent and Cherries chiefs already under way, the deal could be sealed before the weekend, although Tomlin is unlikely to feature in Bournemouth’s top flight opener at home to Aston Villa.

But if he gets up to speed he could be included for the following weekend’s glamour trip to Anfield.

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Tomlin was a £1.5m deadline day buy in January 2014 and was squeezed through the transfer window initially as a emergency loan.

The Leicester-born midfielder, 26, played 14 times for Boro in his first season and scored four times.

Last season he made 28 appearances initially in the play-maker role but in the closing stages of the season he was frequently played on the left.

A potential match-winner, he was among Boro’s best performers at the turn of the year and won the January Player of the Month award for January after an eye-catching spin and shot against the post that bamboozled Vincent Kompany in the 2-0 FA Cup win away at then champions Manchester City.

But he has looked vulnerable at Boro after the summer signings of Stewart Downing, Christian Stuani and Diego Fabbrini, who can all play in the advanced midfield role in the team.

Tomlin has been left frustrated at a lack of pitch time in pre-season and was believed to be unhappy at slipping down the pecking order.

On Saturday he was named as a substitute for the friendly against Getafe but left sharply before the kick-off with boss Karanka later explaining that he had “a stomach upset.”