Worst case scenario

I'm interested in everyone's thoughts of what will happen to our playing and coaching staff IF the worst case scenario occurs and we don't go up at the end of the season. I'm asking now because the responses are less likely to be emotional and knee jerk than after any subsequent play off failure.

I appreciate this question is entirely hypothetical and I certainly hope it proves to be irrelevant, but please don't just say 'it won't happen' and not engage.

From my perspective, I think AK will go, as will most of his backroom staff (including Leo *sob*).

Player wise, I think we would:

Keep Dimi;

Lose Friend (but have a ready made replacement in Husband);

Almost certainly sell Gibbo;

Almost certainly lose Ayala;

Keep Nsue;

Keep Leadbitter;

Very real risk we would lose Clayton;

Lose Adomah;

Keep Downing;

Keep Nugent and Rhodes.

Kalas, Ramirez and de Laet would go back to their parent clubs and I wouldn't expect any of them to return.

Looks pretty bleak when put like that, although I would expect a decent amount of cash coming in from all those potential sales. That might give the new manager sufficient money to play with to build there own team capable of a promotion push, with a few solid/upper end Championship players still here.

What are people's thoughts?

I know this will seem like an annoying answer, and it probably is, but there is to way to really answer that question without knowing, firstly, if the AK to leave, for want of a better word, debacle is really true and, secondly, the financial state of the club; that is to say, if we don't need to be selling players to balance the books, we won't.

I don't think there'd be a whole lot of money available considering the figures Karanka has spent. I think we'd be shopping in the bargain basement. It would be very interesting to see what would happen to all the backroom staff Karanka has assembled. You'd have to think they'd leave with him which is exactly what Gibson wanted to avoid when Mowbray set the wheels in motion during that stint.

I think AK will go and his friends on the coaching staff will leave too.

Players, I think Ayala is the most likely to go. He was meant to sign a new contract a couple of months ago and this whole injured/not-injured debate seems to have put that one off until the end of the season, no doubt is now based on promotion. Other than him, I'm not sure.

In terms of staying, Dimi, Gibbo, Leadbitter, Downing, Stuani, Nugent and Rhodes I think are nailed on to stay. After that, I think Friend and Nsue are likely to remain. Friend is an adopted Teessider and I don't think he'd ask to leave and I'm not sure if there'd be offers for Nsue.

I expect given it's lasted so long without his future being decided, Pearson is waiting to see if this job opens up, so I'd say he's nailed on to replace Aitor if we don't go up. Whether that's the right decision or not, I don't think so but I'd back him regardless.

I honestly think the only player to cause a fuss would be Downing. We'd not see Ramirez again, and I think the offers would be too good to turn down on the likes of Ayala, Clayton and Gibson

I have similar thoughts to you Midlands, pretty much identical actually.

The loan players will be gone so that's an easy place to start but somehow you missed off Kike Sola ;)

I would think we'll be lumbered with certain players because they'll be on wages here that they will struggle to get elsewhere and there may not be sufficient interest in them anyway - Downing, Rhodes, Nugent spring to mind in that group. You can probably add de Pena to that unless we decide to cut our losses.

Gibson, Ayala, Friend, Clayton and Adomah are players I'd put in the group likely to leave but of course it comes down to how much interest there is in them. I believe Friend could have left last summer but we didn't want him to and he stayed. Whether that would happen this time around I'm not sure as he's 29 this year and if he wants to play in the Premier League and somebody wants him then it may be now or never for him.

Then you've got a group I'm not sure about so Nsue, Stuani, Forshaw, Leadbitter, Dimi, Mejias, de Sart, Damia (does he have another year?), Carayol, Baptiste, Reach. Some of them you'd assume have no future here but then who knows. I'd lean towards Stuani moving on assuming we aren't paying him silly wages and Forshaw if he feels he's not going to get much game time assuming we also aren't paying him silly wages. I just don't think a new manager (if there is one) would value Stuani unless he intends to play him up front and that means being able to shift Nugent or Rhodes probably and I think we'd struggle to do that. Leadbitter I think will stay although I'd be quite happy to sell him but if Clayton leaves then it might be better for him to stay. Dimi I think has come to the end of his time here and we should be looking for a replacement, I'm not convinced Mejias is that replacement though. If Dimi was prepared to stay as back up and maybe start moving into coaching if that's what he's looking to do then fine. The rest of the players are a combination of players who are probably squad players at best anyway with the exception of Nsue.

I would guess that part of the problem with all of this is that we'd be stuck with players on high wages that maybe aren't that productive whilst selling players on lower wages who have been productive that we then need to replace with quality without necessarily having the space on the wage bill to do it.

In terms of the manager, my feelings at the moment are that he will leave regardless and it will be a mutual decision rather than him being sacked. I'm basing this on a few different things. I think some of his comments recently suggest someone that is already thinking about moving on. Without knowing the details of what went on before the Charlton game you can't have a manager walking out like that and I'd be surprised if Gibson could simply put it one side and carry on as if nothing has happened. He's got a lot of people's livelihood's in his hands so he needs to know that key people are reliable and Karanka has shown that he might not be. I think Karanka has shown signs recently of feeling the pressure and so you'd have to wonder whether he'd be up for another run at it next season as the pressure will be ramped up to even greater levels. All of this is before you even ask the question about whether he deserves another crack at it. If he goes then the coaching staff he brought in goes with him including the player recruitment people but Agnew would remain in place although a new manager may want someone else but I think Gibson would insist he stays as we must have committed a decent amount of money to get him in the first place.

If the worst happens and we don't go up then unless we make some seriously good decisions in the summer I don't think we'll be competing for promotion, not automatically anyway. I could see us on the edge of the play offs or worse quite honestly simply because of all the upheaval and likely departures. Last season we were building up to something so missing out was obviously bad but we could gather ourselves and come again. I think that is less likely this time around.

Glass half full much.... Who we signing when we get promoted Saturday? Come on Boro!!!!!

It's a thread about the worst case scenario so of course it's glass half full, that's sort of the point.

the weird thing with responding to this hypothetical question for me is how trying to second guess what will happen seems to get intermingled with what i would wish to happen.

but anyway trying to keep it to a IMO basis,

ive got a feeling Dimi is just about used up as the no 1 choice and can see him being replaced but not by what we currently have.  Ayala,s a funny one there seems to be an issue lingering and its quite posibly with AK or a recent squad addition so he may stay depending on others going ,personally i dont think there will be a lot if any premier league interest . Gibson will always attract suitors but unless its silly money we may hang on to him . i agree with the loan players not returning and the ones i can see as the most likely to move on are Friend. Adomah and Nugent . i wont be shocked at all if AK departs as soon as our fate is known , either way . personally i dont think the ISSUE was sorted out and rather Gibson intervened to get us to put it to one side while we limped past the line.

now what i want to happen is for AK to stay and those responsible for the disharmony to be shown the door  no matter how important we or they themselves think they are .

but hopefully this thread IS hypothetical  and we DO get the point or 3 on Saturday

As much as I love Dimi he'll turn 38 next season and is gonna get tested far more in the coming seasons.

If we go up, I'd like to see us push to get Marshall from Cardiff. If not, then I'll be happy with whatever we can scout elsewhere.

I think Albie and Friend will definitely go next season if we fail to go up. Gorgeous George's stock is quite high right now and we could command a good price for him. (English + LB = wonga.) I think with AA, there has been a sort of steady truce this season when he wasn't sold in the summer transfer window. I think he's been more than glad to see this season out and then move back down south - which I don't hold against him, he's been a great player for us.

If we didn't go up I definitely think Karanka and he's staff are gone, I think Stuani, De Pena, certs, Ayala, Nsue, Friend strong possibilities, I can't see anyone paying Downing's salary so I reckon we'd be stuck with him.

I don't care how much anyone bids we have got to keep Clayton that's a must, does the work of 2 players.

If the worst happens would you really want AK to stay?

I suppose another £30m investment from Gibbo could move us up an extra place in the league.

If we get Pearson, surely that means we will be PL champions by 2019?

If the worst happens would you really want AK to stay?

 

I suppose another £30m investment from Gibbo could move us up an extra place in the league.

No I wouldn't want him to stay, because despite huge backing from Gibbo, the season will have been a failure.

If the worst happens would you really want AK to stay?

 

I suppose another £30m investment from Gibbo could move us up an extra place in the league.

Just to play devil's advocate.

But what people have said on here is that £15m of that spend were not AK's signings