Middlesbrough have finally sacked Aitor Karanka, and it could be bad news for the likes of Sunderland, Hull City, Crystal Palace and Swansea City.
Hull City manager Marco Silva and Swansea City manager Paul Clement
Middlesbrough were, to put it simply, ‘doomed’ under Aitor Karanka. Without a league win in 2017, the club were sinking without a trace. The fewest wins in the Premier League, the fewest goals in the Premier League and the fewest shots on target in the Premier League. Many had Boro down as safe bets to make the drop.
The sacking of Aitor Karanka probably ought to have come sooner, but his success in achieving promotion where so many had failed before him bought him time at the Riverside. In the Premier League though, there has been an inevitableness about Boro’s struggles. Emphasis on keeping it tight at the back and avoiding defeat hasn’t proved effective.
Yet whilst it became clear that such a ploy was proving unsuccessful some time ago, former Real Madrid defender Karanka showed little signs of changing things. Goals have been Middlesbrough’s well-documented ‘problem area’, so to speak, but that really ought not be the case. Alvaro Negredo is a throughly capable forward for a bottom half Premier League team, and Karanka has had a handful of other decent strikers at his disposal over the course of the campaign.
Alvaro Negredo needs to get among the goals for Middlesbrough
Hull City, Swansea City and Leicester City have all reaped the rewards of a change of leadership so far this season, whilst Sunderland and Middlesbrough who stood by their men occupy the bottom two places in the Premier League. However, Boro have now pulled the trigger, and it would be fair to say they now present more of an immediate threat to their fellow strugglers.
Whoever replaces Karanka will still have a mammoth task on their hands, but Middlesbrough have Swansea City, Hull City, Burnley and Bournemouth all to play, as well as a home game against Southampton in the penultimate game of the season which could be targeted, if one entertains the possibility that the Saints could take their foot off the gas with nothing sizeable to play for.
The situation at Middlesbrough is certainly not akin to that of Leicester City, where everyone knew they had a squad capable of producing far better than they were. However, comparisons to Swansea City would probably be more accurate. The Boro team is one with quality in certain areas, and certainly one with enough ability to mix it with other teams at the foot of the table.
Middlesbrough’s next boss will inherit a strong defence
Middlesbrough’s next manager will inherit a strong and well-organised back line, capable of keeping clean sheets and rarely conceding more than two goals in a single game. The task then will be doing what Karanka couldn’t, get the team scoring goals.
In Viktor Fischer and Gaston Ramirez, the new boss will inherit a couple of midfielders with a bit of craft and guile about them, and in Alvaro Negredo, Cristhian Stuani and Patrick Bamford, one should be able to find an attacking combination capable of scoring goals.
The man who replaces Karanka is of course crucial, but there will be a lift at Boro, there can be little doubt about that. They will most likely face the tough task of Manchester United managerless, but Boro’s next manager will travel to Swansea City and Hull City in his opening two games, meaning a week into his new job, he could be all but mathematically relegated or well-placed for a great escape. It is a huge couple of weeks coming up for Middlesbrough.
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