Middlesbrough’s world turned upside down

A managerial dismissal, a new boss suffering eight defeats in his first 12 matches and three senior players leaving with three more coming in have all contributed to the sense of chaos that has enveloped the Riverside Stadium in recent months.

In many ways, it is a very un-Middlesbrough like way to be going on. Yet at countless other football clubs the state of flux that is apparent at the moment would simply be par for the course.

As a veteran of more than 400 Football League appearances, Boro goalkeeper Danny Coyne has seen more upheaval than most.

The 36-year-old has played for five different clubs since making his debut for Tranmere Rovers in 1992, and regards current events at the Riverside as nothing out of the ordinary.

“This isn’t an unusual situation,”

said Coyne, who has returned to Boro’s starting line-up in the last four matches in place of Brad Jones.

“Things like this happen in football - it’s just one of those things.

“Football clubs go through transitional periods all the time. Sometimes, you don’t know why things happen - they just do. It happens in football and, as players, all you can do is go out onto the training ground and work hard to get the results on a Saturday.

“It doesn’t matter what’s happening behind the scenes.

Regardless of all that, you just have to get on with your job.

“I’ve seen it a few times to be honest. I’ve seen two or three managers come and go within the space of a season or so. This is fairly stable for me!”

Nevertheless, for many of Boro’s younger players, the events of the last three months have represented a significant break from the norm.

The likes of David Wheater, Tony McMahon and Adam Johnson had never witnessed a managerial dismissal before Southgate was sacked, and Coyne admits it is the responsibility of Boro’s more experienced players to help ensure they are not scarred by the process.

“For me personally, it’s just about getting on with it, and what will be will be,” he said.

“But some of the younger lads haven’t seen this before, and hopefully it helps to have the some of the more experienced players on hand to talk them through it.

“Different managers do things a different way and you have to get used to that. You have to get used to the new style and new methods that a new manager wants to introduce.

But it’s still football and you just have to adapt.”

That process of adaptation is proving unexpectedly awkward, with Middlesbrough having fallen nine Championship places since Southgate was dismissed in mid-October.

They have won only one of the six home games they have played under Strachan, a run that has seen them slip six points adrift of the play-off places.

Today’s rearranged home game with Swansea City provides an immediate opportunity to make ground on one of their play-off rivals, and Coyne admits the window of opportunity for turning things around is beginning to close.

“You can’t say that if we get beat against Swansea our season will be over,” he said. “But if we’re going to go on a run, we need to start it sooner rather than later. If we go on a run and get some consistency back, anything is possible.

“We can still go up. If we put a run together, there are a lot of points to play for. We still have to play all the teams that are up there again.”

As well as targeting a marked improvement from his team, Coyne has also set a personal ambition of retaining his place in Strachan’s starting line-up for the remainder of the season.

While Nicky Weaver’s unsuccessful trial at Rockliffe Park this week suggests Strachan is unsatisfied with his goalkeeping options, Coyne is determined to retain his senior status.

“I was never going to be happy just sitting on the bench,” he said. “That’s not me, I always want to play and train as hard as I can. If I’m playing, great, if I’m not playing, I want to push the other keeper as hard as I can.

“If I get a chance from there, hopefully I can take it.

At the minute, I’m playing, but you never know what’s going to happen in football.”