Rob Edwards is expected to officially start his new role at Middlesbrough boss this weekend, and will face a busy first couple of weeks in the job.

With the players back for pre-season training at the back end of next week, there will be an initial period of settling at Rockliffe for the new boss before the real work begins. Edwards will be tasked with transforming Boro into a promotion-chasing side after last season’s disappointing tenth-placed finish.

Having beaten other candidates to land the role, Edwards now needs a fast start in the Boro hot seat as he aims to win supporters over quickly – many of whom began to grow disillusioned towards the end of last season. Here’s Edwards’ immediate priorities as he takes up the reins on Teesside.

Transfer planning

One of the first things in the diary for the new Boro head coach is meeting with Boro’s recruitment team and finalising plans for the summer transfer window. Edwards was already familiar with both head of football Kieran Scott and head of recruitment Chris Jones anyway, having previously worked with the pair at Wolves.

Scott was involved in the interview process that saw Edwards eventually emerge as Boro’s preferred candidate for the role, but the meeting with the recruitment team will be his first chance to sit down with Jones where they will discuss Boro’s previously put-together shopping plans.

The current expectation is that nothing much of the initial planning will be expected to change, but understandably, Boro have been reluctant to push too far ahead with any potential deals before the new man was in place. Besides, little transfer activity is yet happening, with so many players still away on holiday.

Edwards will have the opportunity to assess the plans that the club have, and the targets they’ve drawn up for this summer. He’ll be able to offer his opinions and suggestions on other areas he might feel need strengthening this summer too. From there, Boro can really get going on their recruitment drive.

Tactical planning and season preparations

A big part of the above could be influenced by whatever plans Edwards has for Boro and his tactical plan at the Riverside. He’ll already have at the very least a rough idea of how he wants his side to look, with a big factor in winning Steve Gibson over this summer being his existing knowledge of the squad he will inherit.

Before the players return at the back end of next week, he’ll have a few days to really draw up his tactical plans and the scheduling of pre-season in order to try and make the most of the extended training time he’ll have with the players ahead of the start of the new season.

Contract decisions

In a similar ballpark, there are some big contract decisions that might have to be made this summer, and the new boss is likely to get a say in some. Jonny Howson is out of contract this summer but was said to be in talks with the club over potentially signing a new deal.

On top of that, there are seven first-team players whose contracts expire in 12 months’ time, making this an important summer for them as far as their futures, or lack thereof, are concerned. Whether any contracts of other players need exploring remains to be seen.

Player introductions

Going back to Edwards’ start at Forest Green, the new Boro boss made an effort to contact each player individually ahead of the start of pre-season. He held conversations with them about the future and his expectations, both for the team and them as individuals.

He was appointed at Forest Green a lot earlier in the summer so it remains to be seen whether he’ll do that at Boro in the next week or not, with players returning for pre-season next week anyway. Either way, he’ll be meeting his new players next week at some point and will be hoping to make a quick impression.

Former players have spoken highly of his man-management and empathetic nature. He’s previously spoke about learning from veterans such as Mick McCarthy over how best to handle players and treat them with respect. Any new manager has to quickly win the dressing room over if he’s to get the buy-in he ultimately needs.

First impressions

It’s not just players he’ll want to make a good first impression with. Edwards has previously described fans as the most important part of any football club, and ensuring they feel connected will be the hope. That’s not always been the case recently at Boro.

Fans of previous clubs speak highly of Edwards’ communication skills. It was something he was particularly wary of when taking the Luton Town job back in 2022 because he’d only recently left their biggest rivals after a short, ill-fated spell. Winning matches will always help, but he appeared to do an effective job at quickly winning supporters over.

At Boro, it’s fair to say that reaction so far has been mixed. While Edwards ticks a lot of boxes, he’s not really excited the masses. Boro fans will almost certainly get behind him initially when the season starts, but it still feels like the fanbase needs a bit more reinvigorating before the start of the season. Edwards’ communication between now and then will play a big part in that. As well as an initial in-house club interview, it’s expected he’ll meet with the media at some point next week.

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