Source: Northern_Echo
Strachan well prepared for his test of character
IT might not boast the glamour of the Premier League, and it's safe to assume the 24 teams involved in it are desperate to be playing in a different division in 12 months time.[LNB] But when Middlesbrough kick off their Championship campaign against Ipswich this afternoon, they will be playing in a league Gordon Strachan believes is the most competitive in the country.[LNB] With Norwich and Leeds having entered from League One, and Portsmouth, Hull and Burnley having dropped from the top-flight, this year's promotion battle looks like being more hard-fought than ever.[LNB] So while Boro will start as favourites following a summer that has seen the likes of Kris Boyd, Kevin Thomson and Stephen McManus sign at the Riverside, a nervous nine months await. In the Championship, nothing can be taken for granted.[LNB] From the top team to the bottom team, I think this league has the narrowest gap of any league there is, said Strachan, who failed to guide his side into the top ten last season.[LNB] I think there's a huge gap between the top of the Premier League and the bottom, and the same applies to the SPL. This league is really close though.[LNB] This year looks like being even closer than ever because in Norwich and Leeds, you have two big sides coming into it from below.[LNB] I'm just really getting to know this division. It took me about nine months to get my head around it and I said to someone recently, The Champions League tests your ability this league tests your character'. It's a character league and that's what I've been looking for.[LNB] Having been shocked at the limitations of the squad he inherited when he replaced Gareth Southgate last October, Strachan spent the January transfer window recruiting tried-and-tested players he felt he could trust.[LNB] The likes of Barry Robson, Scott McDonald and Willo Flood formed the first wave of squad strengthening, and while Boro's results in the second half of last season failed to markedly improve, their performances were more in keeping with the demands of a league that requires effort and commitment in abundance.[LNB] This summer's recruitment drive has followed a similar theme, and the Boro side that will line up today should boast a steeliness and resolve that was lacking in many of last season's performances.[LNB] I'm happier with the squad, said Strachan. I know the squad will take more responsibility now.[LNB] There are more characters in the squad, bigger personalities.[LNB] I know fine well that when I've been successful before, I've always had good players, good personalities and good characters around me. I'm trying to gather as many as I can.[LNB] The philosophy of the team is that I want a side that can compete in every game and enjoy playing in every game. I want every person where, even if they're not having a great day, they can still be a good team-mate.[LNB] I want to see football that I like watching. I want to see crosses, I want to see shots, I want to see headers and I want to see passing. I want to see football that can be played anywhere, at any time, in any conditions.[LNB] In addition, of course, he also wants to see victories, and the search begins with today's opener against an Ipswich side managed by former Sunderland boss Roy Keane.[LNB] Boro's pre-season displays have been positive, but as Strachan has been at pains to stress throughout the last month, pre-season performances are an irrelevance once the real action begins.[LNB] Boyd and McDonald will play alongside each other for the first time in a competitive fixture, while Nicky Bailey is expected to edge out Estonia international Tarmo Kink in the battle to line up alongside Robson, Thomson and Flood in midfield.[LNB] With Matt Kilgallon set to join on loan from Sunderland shortly, there is a mood of optimism sweeping across Teesside.[LNB] But Strachan admitted: You go through a lot of emotions in the week before the season. You know problems will arise, but that's what we're paid for, to deal with the dark moments.[LNB]
