LEO PERCOVICH and Carlos Cachada will take over touchline duties if Middlesbrough head coach Aitor Karanka receives a touchline ban, following yesterday’s surprise decision to part company with Craig Hignett.

Hignett has left his position as assistant manager after less than nine months in the role, with Karanka admitting the pair had different opinions over a number of key training-ground issues.

Karanka is hoping to appoint a new permanent assistant shortly, with Jonathan Woodgate having emerged as an early contender as his playing career begins to draw to an end.

Woodgate has begun the process of gaining his coaching badges, and Karanka has previously spoken of the importance of his assistant having an established relationship with Middlesbrough and an intimate knowledge of both the inner workings of the club and of English football in general.

However, it is extremely unlikely that Hignett’s replacement will be confirmed before the weekend, by which time Karanka could have received a touchline ban from the Football Association after he was charged with improper conduct yesterday following his dismissal in the wake of Rudy Gestede’s controversial late equaliser during Blackburn Rovers’ 1-1 draw at the Riverside.

Karanka has until 8pm on Friday to respond to the charge, and while he is keen to speak to FA officials to explain his actions, he accepts he behaved inappropriately in the wake of Saturday’s final whistle.

“I want to apologise because I know I made a mistake,” said the Boro head coach. “I knew one second later that I had, but imagine when you saw what I saw what my feelings were. I lost control and I want to apologise.

“Our crowd don’t deserve my conduct and after the game, one member of my staff apologised to the fourth official and the referee, and I would like to move on as soon as possible.

“I don’t know what the steps are here in England, but I am ready to explain my actions. I have read that I pushed the fourth official, but that is not true. I had an argument with him, and I am happy to speak to someone to explain my behaviour.”

Whether physical contact with the fourth official, David Coote, is proved or not, Karanka can expect a lengthy ban if he is found guilty of improper conduct.

His absence from the touchline would create something of a problem given Hignett’s departure, but Percovich and Cachada have already been lined up to step into the breach if required.

Uruguayan goalkeeping coach Percovich is Karanka’s closest confidante on the Middlesbrough coaching staff, with the pair having become close during their time together at Colorado Rapids in America’s MLS.

Percovich accompanied Karanka when the Spaniard was interviewed for the job of Boro’s head coach, and has always had a wider remit than the traditional confines of the goalkeeper coach’s role. Cachada’s position on the backroom team was also one of Karanka’s prerequisites before agreeing to succeed Tony Mowbray.

Ironically, the closeness of the pair’s relationship with Karanka was one of the catalysts for Hignett’s departure, with the former striker having increasingly found himself on the periphery of first-team affairs despite his formal position as number two.

Having overseen a large number of coaching sessions during his former stint as assistant to Colin Cooper at Hartlepool United, Hignett had hoped to be equally hands-on during his time at Middlesbrough.

However, Karanka has quickly developed a reputation as someone who likes to be in complete control of his training regime, personally putting on the majority of training sessions and dictating the minutiae of his players’ preparations for their next game.

Away from the training pitch, Karanka has always leaned on Percovich and Cahada, and there were times, especially at away matches, when Hignett looked a peripheral figure on the touchline.

The pair have grown further apart in recent weeks, with tensions in their working relationship becoming apparent, culminating in yesterday’s parting of the ways.

“We had our differences on decisions and different points of view,” admitted Karanka. “We all want the best for the club, and we talked and agreed that this is the best thing for the club.

“I want to say thank you to him because he knows he is more than an assistant. He is my friend, and the first assistant I chose. He has been very important to me in the past eight months, and I have him for the rest of my life. He is a legend at this club, and I have to wish him the best.

“It was a difficult decision, but this is football. We have to try our best for the club, and this is the next step. I want to see this club in the highest position, and I know Higgy will get other jobs and he deserves the best.”

Hignett does not have another position lined up, but given his positive influence at both Middlesbrough and Hartlepool, it is unlikely to be long before he is offered another coaching or managerial role within the Football League.