Source: Daily_Mail
Middlesbrough defend signing £12.7m Alves but admit four goals is poor
Middlesbrough chairman Steve Gibson has defended the club's decision to smash their transfer record to land striker Afonso Alves.
Boro paid Heerenveen £12.7million for the Brazilian in January last year, and after seeing him score six goals in six Barclays Premier League appearances as the 2007-08 season drew to a close, had high hopes for the new campaign.
However, Alves managed only four league goals as Boro struck just 28 times during the entire season and hurtled out of the top flight.
Gibson, answering fans' questions on BBC Tees, said: "He would be the first to admit that the season hasn't gone the way hewould have hoped.
