Boro chairman will have time to decide club's new direction

STEVE Gibson will be delighted to have the benefit of the breathing space allowed by the international break as he starts the search for a new head coach.

- ERICPAYLOR

Tony Mowbray is many bookies' favourite

Rob Edwards' move to Wolves came out of the blue and has left the Middlesbrough chairman at square one as he looks for a replacement.

Gibson knows full well that it's a minefield out there when you are looking for a new coach.

Look at the clubs who have suffered from making bad appointments in the last few years.

Gibson's focus every season is to try to take the club back into the Premier League, which is why he does his damndest to support the man in the hot seat.

In addition, despite the fact that Gibson has a name in the game as one of the best chairmen to work for, he is not afraid to make changes when he sees things not going the way he expects.

In recent years, Chris Wilder, Neil Warnock, Jonathan Woodgate and Gary Monk have all survived less than 18 months.