Aitor Karanka will leave Middlesbrough at the end of the season, with Nigel Pearson reportedly being told to hold off from accepting any roles until the end of the season, that’s according to reports in the Daily Mail.
The Spaniard is said to still have a fractious relationship with some of the senior Boro players following his acrimonious dressing room spat which led to his absence from the Charlton match after owner Steve Gibson issued a cooling off period.
It’s believed that whether Boro get promoted or not, Karanka will leave at the end of the season as he frustratingly watched his side play out a 0-0 draw at home to Ipswich Town yesterday. It leaves them tied on 87 points with both Burnley and Brighton.
There has been mounting speculation as to whether the rift could be healed after such a public breakdown in relationship between players and manager and although he insists he is proud of his players after subsequently going on an eight game unbeaten run, doubts remain about the former Real Madrid assistant’s future.
Earlier in the season Karanka was heavily linked with the Valencia vacancy after Gary Neville departed the Spanish club. It seems Karanka and former Watford boss Quique Sanchez Flores are now frontrunners for the position.
In such circumstances Steve Gibson has earmarked former Boro captain Nigel Pearson as the ideal successor to take over at the Riverside and has reportedly asked Pearson to refrain from making any decisions on his future until the situation at Middlesbrough becomes clearer.
Pearson was sacked by Leicester City last summer and has been out of work since but has been linked with the vacant Aston Villa job in recent weeks.
Middlesbrough now face Birmingham and Brighton in their two remaining games this season, with an automatic promotion place their main aim
