Middlesbrough shocked most football fans when they sacked Gareth Southgate on Wednesday.
Southgate managed to survive last season’s relegation and was doing well this season, having guided the club to within one point of the top of the Championship. So why did the axe suddenly fall?
90minutesonline spoke to Andy Morgan and David Meehan of ComeOnBoro.com about the current situation, and a few other things besides.
How happy are you with the season so far?
In a way the happiness of the season fluctuates on a game by game basis.
After the Watford defeat we were four points off the pace at the top of
the league, but after we beat Derby that gap was closed to one, as Newcastle and West Brom both lost.
Performances haven't been up to standard and we have scraped through games in some cases, but then the same could be said for everyone else in the league too. It seems to be quite even.
I suppose third place, one point off the top, you have got to be happy with, even if some of the performances - and results, particularly against Leicester, Watford and Coventry - have left a lot to be desired.
Obviously the big news at Middlesbrough is the sacking of Gareth Southgate. How surprised were you not only by the sacking, but by the timing of it, coming as it did after a 2-0 win over Derby? Your chairman Steve Gibson has said he made the decision “several weeks ago”.
The timing of the sacking was the most surprising thing about it.
Steve Gibson had the opportunity to sack Gareth at the end of last season after our relegation, or even during last season when we went in freefall from November onwards. Had Southgate been sacked in January, as the fans were calling for at the time, then someone could have come in and maybe saved our Premiership status.
As it was, Gibson waited too long and we suffered as a result. Only Gibson knows his reasons, but I assume this was done on financial grounds.
More recently, the fact that Southgate wasn't sacked after the Watford game was quite surprising. It was a dire affair and came off the back of a number of poor performances in which motivation was absent, and tactics and team selection were baffling.
The Derby performance was little better, we just got the result. Still, Southgate would have been sacked from most clubs long before now - we were resigned to keeping him for the indefinite.
Was Gibson just waiting to get a replacement lined up before giving Southgate the boot?
I'd hope so. We are third in the league, one point off the top, and promotion is our sole objective this season. This rocking of the boat is a little concerning but Gibson rarely does anything rashly so we have to trust that a replacement is coming quickly.
The interesting thing is why he didn't get someone in to work alongside Gareth, à la Terry Venables with Bryan Robson.
Who do you think will come in and who do you want to come in for Southgate? Gordon Strachan is getting mentioned a lot.
It's looking like Strachan, but then it looked like Martin O'Neill three years ago until that fell through and we got Southgate.
We need someone with experience and pedigree who can get us out of the Championship and make us competitive in the Premier League.
Looking at those available, Strachan has a strong CV and he could do a job at Boro. Whether Boro fans will warm to his style of play though, I don't know.
What we don't want is a promotion from within again. Boro have had three rookie managers now - Robson, McClaren and Southgate - and it is arguable whether this
experiment worked.
Robson brought the glamour but didn't bring the trophies. McClaren brought the trophies but didn't bring the glamour. What Southgate brought, I don't know. He always looked rather dapper in the dugout.
My own preference would be Nigel Pearson. He did wonders at Newcastle and Southampton; things are going well at Leicester; he's a former captain of the club and Boro is the next natural step in his managerial career.
What are you expecting from this season?
Promotion. It's the one and only target.
Performances need to improve and someone with a greater tactical nous in the dugout will certainly benefit the side.
On paper we should be there or thereabouts and if an experienced manager can come in and inject the belief, confidence and tactical skills we need, there is no reason why we can't bounce straight back up.
What are your greatest fears for this season?
Colin Cooper becoming manager, or any other promotion from within. We need to bounce straight back to the top flight otherwise I feel a long-term malaise in the Championship like Watford, Coventry et al have endured.
Who’s your best player and why?
Gary O'Neil. Some would possibly point to Adam Johnson, but the stats show that when O'Neil is in the side, his industry and guile is invaluable.
Our first little dodgy spell this season was down to the fact that O'Neil was absent with an injury.
And which player would you gladly see the back of? And why?
Andrew Taylor. I have never rated him. His positional sense is worrying.
If you could sign one player from another team in the Championship, who
would it be and why?
It's a tricky one as I feel there are some excellent players in the Championship, but I would perhaps have to go with Kevin Nolan at Newcastle United.
He has always had an eye for goal from midfield and he is Premier League quality. He is also a player who would be able to make the step up into the top-flight should we achieve promotion.
Other players that have impressed this season include Chris Brunt, Youssouf Mulumbu, Michael Chopra, Nicky Maynard and Steven Quinn.
What’s Middlesbrough’s best terrace chant?
At the moment the only imaginative one I can think of is about Jeremie Aliadier and sung to the tune of Baby Give It Up by KC And The Sunshine Band.
It's getting a bit old now, so hopefully some new ones will start doing the rounds.
What half-time snacks do you recommend at the Riverside?
The pies. They are much better than anything else that is up for grabs, although I very rarely buy any food at the Riverside.
What are your best memories of supporting Middlesbrough?
The last ever game at Ayresome Park; the first ever Wembley final against Leicester City in the League Cup; lifting our first and only ever trophy at the Millenium Stadium by beating Bolton 2-1 in the Carling Cup final, and the UEFA Cup run to the final culminating in a great day out in Eindhoven…apart from the result obviously.
If you could change one thing at Middlesbrough, what would it be?
I'd add a couple of zeros to the bank balance.
Hopefully in the future, if we are promoted, we will be on a sound financial footing where we can at least compete with the other sides.
Where are Middlesbrough going to be in five years’ time?
Probably still in Middlesbrough I imagine. I don't see any foreign oligarch coming and buying us. We're not that glamorous really.