If Boro fans had been told that there would be a genuine chance that the team would get relegated from the Championship this season; they would have probably called you insane. Yet, despite having a team that finished just below the play-off positions last season, Middlesbrough have found themselves in the relegation dogfight. The shocked and concerned fans turned around to find where the fault lay. Many turned to Johnathan Woodgate and his inexperience; a few others pointed the blame to Middlesbrough’s signings track record and a small but vocal number of fans who have turned upon Steve Gibson as the man at fault for the clubs current crisis.
The general argument against the chairman being his decision to hire an inexperienced coach, not backing the team financially and being too lax on pulling the firing trigger. Many of those who have taken up this argument have looked back at his track record as a chairman and announced that his decisions at times were also baffling. In turn they have grown to believe that with a different chairman and owner, Middlesbrough would have reached the premier league by now. They sometimes refer to Victor Orta's period at the club as an anomaly of this pattern.
Since I appose this argument I am going to present my own case for Steve Gibson’s integral and positive role at the club in a number of short articles. Each of these articles will offer as balanced of a rebuttal as possible. Please bear in mind that this is my opinion, but I think it is valuable to consider and listen apposing perspectives and even have a discussion on the matter.