Middlesbrough

No comfort zone for the manager

Useful information

That's in: action from the Riverside Stadium last season in the match against Newcastle. Fans will be desperate for some silverware after going so close in recent years
Photograph: MICHAEL STEELE

Summer summary: How would Middlesbrough survive without waging war against one of their players? Christian Ziege has followed the likes of Fabrizio Ravanelli and Emerson by demanding a transfer, but Bryan Robson and chairman Steve Gibson continue to aim high. Signed Boksic and Karembeu and made official bids for Sutton, McManaman and Ehiogu.

Transfers in: Joseph-Desire Job (Lens) £3m; Alen Boksic (Lazio) £2.5m; Noel Whelan (Coventry City) £2.2m; Christian Karembeu (Real Madrid) £2.1m; Paul Okon (Fiorentina) free; Mark Crossley (Nottingham Forest) free.

Transfers out: Paul Gascoigne (Everton) free, Ben Roberts (Charlton Athletic), free. Tearful farewells: Juninho and Gascoigne (although, in the latter case, more cheerful than tearful). Looking forward to: The usual chaos and unpredictablity, whether on the field or off.

Worried about: More patronising guff about whether Christian Karembeu and Adriana, his Slovakian supermodel wife, can happily settle in the wilds of the North East. Ever walked in Teesdale, visited Durham, or had a night out in Newcastle?

Tactical profile: Er, sorry? Tactics? Right, then. Football. Kick it, goal, hurrah! A goalkeeper, some defenders, midfield (definitely) and a striker or two. Simple as that. Isn’t it? Style: With Karembeu and Phil Stamp in the same first-team squad, think caviar and ketchup. One player they need: Two actually. Robbo remains in the hunt for a defender to compensate for Gary Pallister’s ageing limbs and advancing years, while an inspirational figure to replace Gazza/Juninho is also sought.

Fans’ Gripe: That Middlesbrough have yet again shown themselves incapable of keeping their best players contented. Ziege’s career was in the doldrums when he arrived from AC Milan last summer; one season of consistent excellence later, the Germany international is agitating for a move.

Up-and-coming prospect: Carlos Marinelli, the 18-year-old signed from Boca Juniors, has already been saddled with unrealistically high expectations. Will he be another Juninho or another Jaime Moreno?

Manager’s quality: A moot point, this. Six years on Teesside, Robson has spent millions, has a modern, functional stadium and has a training complex to rival anything in Europe. Rails against the public perception of his tactical naivety, but has yet to fulfill the potential that has long had him marked down as a future England manager. Could do with a trophy. Any trophy.

Ticking timebomb: Gascoigne’s wayward elbow will not be missed, but the potential explosiveness of a squad which includes representatives from Australia, Italy, Argentina, Cameroon, Columbia and France, as well as Noel Whelan, should not be underestimated. Mark Crossley, the goalkeeper, can always be relied upon for a comedy blunder or two.

Potential of new signings: Promising. The versatile Karembeu is an eye-catching capture, Alen Boksic is a proven campaigner and the rest will pad out a previously shallow squad. Sample headlines: "Just the Job", "Crossley’s Own-goal Horror", "Karembeu Walks out on Middlesbrough".

Hollywood actor most likely to star in Middlesbrough, the Movie: Gwyneth Paltrow. Inflated wages, bickers with co-stars and possesses a dodgy English accent. Also rubbish at football.

Least likely TV soundbites: From Robson: "I don’t think Sir Alex was expecting us to play the sweeper system, with overlapping wing-backs and a withdrawn striker. Basically, we out-thought Manchester United." From Karembeu: "Euro 2000? Already forgotten. No French footballer likes to dwell on past glories."

Lookalike: Colin Cooper and Robert Carlyle?

Prediction: Mid-table, but no comfort zone for the manager.

GEORGE CAULKIN

Useful information

Squad: 1 Mark Schwarzer; 2 Curtis Fleming; 3 Dean Gordon; 4 Steve Vickers; 5 Gianluca Festa; 6 Gary Pallister; 7 Robbie Mustoe; 8 Christian Karembeu; 9 Paul Ince; 10 Brian Deane; 11 Alen Boksic; 12 Keith O’Neill; 13 Marlon Beresford; 14 Paul Okon; 15 Neil Maddison; 16 Joseph-Desire Job; 17 Christian Ziege; 18 Andy Campbell; 19 Hamilton Ricard; 20 Alun Armstrong; 21 Craig Harrison; 22 Mark Sumerbell; 23 Carlos Marinelli; 24 Phil Stamp; 25 Mark Crossley; 26 Noel Whelan; 27 Robbie Stockdale; 28 Colin Cooper; 29 Jason Gavin; 31 Alan Moore; 32 Steve Baker; 33 Anthony Ormerod.

Stadium: BT Cellnet Riverside

Capacity: 35,100

Address: Middlesbrough TS3 6RS

Telephone number: 01642 877700

Clubcall: 09068 12 11 81

Website: www.mfc.co.uk

After a transfer to a new designer over the summer, this promising site is still being developed. An entertaining fun section and an informative daily round-up of the gossip in the papers.

Unofficial site: www.boro.n3.net

Definitive — puts the official site in the shade. Detailed news and match reports, historical information, video and audio downloads, as well as games and a search engine.

Manager: Bryan Robson

Assistant manager: Viv Anderson

First Team Coach: Gordon McQueen

Chairman: Steve Gibson

Ticket details: 01642 877 745 (box office)

Ticket prices: £15.50-£32

Cheapest/most expensive adult season ticket: £313/£470

Recommended radio station: Century Radio 100.7; Boro TV also broadcasts.

Programme: £2

Fanzine: Fly Me to the Moon

Cost of adult replica shirt: £40

Training ground: Rockliffe Park, Hurworth

Directions to ground: 0.75 miles to the east of Middlesbrough station; ten minutes walk from the town centre. Bus Nos. 36,37 and 38 run from the bus station to North Ormesby near the stadium. No parking at the ground, which is visible from the A66 (Middlesbrough by-pass).

Pubs near the ground: Doctor Browns, 135 Corporation Rd; The Tap and Barrel, 86 Newport Rd