The wait is finally over and after a three week search, Rob Edwards is the man that Middlesbrough have named as their new head coach.

Replacing Michael Carrick in the Riverside hotseat, Edwards is tasked with improving on last season’s disappointing tenth-place finish and trying to get Boro back into promotion contention. He is said to have a clear vision for how he wants Boro to look moving forward, though he admitted it might not be achievable to take the ultimate step in his first season.

So far, though he seemed to impress in his unveiling to win more supporters around, the general mood around fans would suggest a little uncertainty over the former Luton Town boss’ appointment. Most will surely give him a chance, but it’s fair to say he wasn’t many people’s first choice. We sought the views of our fan panel on the man Boro have chosen to take them forward.

Youtube analyst Phil Spencer, Boro Breakdown co-host Dana Malt, Boropolis co-founder Chris Cassidy and Twe12th Man member John Donovan make up our Boro fan panel and they offer their verdicts on Boro’s new head coach and their hopes for him in the role.

Chris Cassidy

Rob Edwards was never my number one candidate to replace Michael Carrick, but after a week of listening to his interviews, the announcement of Adi Viveash, and then hearing him speak for the first time as Boro head coach, I’m feeling a lot more optimistic about the appointment.

Middlesbrough weren’t good enough on the pitch for the majority of last season, but they also got a lot wrong off it. Particularly Michael Carrick’s handling of the media. Admittedly, how your head coach handles the media doesn’t win you points, but it does help create unity, and after one interview it already seems that Edwards’ heart-on-the-sleeve approach may benefit Boro in the stands.

Middlesbrough supporters have been crying out for some transparency, and Edwards has already made several promises regarding his ‘non-negotiables’ that will definitely help get fans on board. A lot of supporters have also been quick to express their concerns about Edwards being the ‘easy’ or ‘cheap’ option, seemingly due to the fact Kieran Scott and Boro’s new head coach worked together at Wolves.

Ultimately, the club have yet again chosen to hire a manager who was already out of work, but I’m choosing to look at Edwards and Scott’s working history as a positive. The 42-year-old has already referenced the ‘clarity’ on recruitment, and that can only be a good thing after the confusion which led to a dreadful January window under Carrick last season.

In terms of on-the-pitch matters, focus will of course quickly shift to results and points once the season is under way. However, even in that respect I feel a lot more confident. The inclusion of Viveash in the coaching staff will give the Boro dugout exactly what it was missing last season. Experience, thought-provoking in-game suggestions and a genuine wealth of top-level coaching.

It may not be the big-name appointment supporters were hoping for, but it certainly makes a lot of sense. Edwards fits the current club infrastructure and, perhaps most importantly, has already proven he’s capable of getting a team out of this division.

Dana Malt

I’ve felt pretty indifferent about it, but I am lifted knowing he’ll be assisted by the well regarded Adi Viveash, who was described by many Coventry fans as being the brains behind Mark Robins’ success.

There is a lot of intrigue though. Rob Edwards’ style of play places huge importance on out-of-possession work; on counter-pressing in particular. It’s cemented in energy and great fitness levels.

It sounds really great, but this is a Middlesbrough team that just didn’t play that way under Michael Carrick. They weren’t anything like that. How quickly can he bridge the gap between one style and the other?

On the ball play is going to be interesting too. At Luton he had wide players that were either quick and direct or, in the case of Alfie Doughty, very good crossers. Boro have neither profile right now, so the squad – which needed work anyway – needs work befitting of Edwards’ way.

I would say I’m going into this new managerial chapter with hope over expectation. From here, it’s up to Edwards to turn that intrigue into excitement.

John Donovan

It seemed to be a toss up over which would be delivered first, HS2 or Rob Edwards being announced as new Boro boss! Finally, after a long wait, the new coaching team were unveiled on Tuesday.

Rob Edwards was given the task to push Boro forward, along with Adi Viveash and Harry Watling. He was chosen over the other shortlisted candidates and is now tasked to lift the teams fortunes and restore the fervour of the fans.

I said on an earlier fans panel question that I didn’t have a favourite out of the three shortlisted candidates, but with Edwards’ assistants being unveiled, I am more than happy with the new set up. Adi Viveash is very good tactically and is very demanding, and he and Harry Watling have a good record of developing players.

They both have a lot of experience and I’m hoping that, with Edwards’ record at Forest Green Rovers and Luton Town, the management team can get the best out of our squad. In his opening interview he said all the things we wanted to hear as fans, but the bottom line is results.

He said he wanted to see steel and fight from the team, something that was lacking in many games last season. If he can add that to the players then that’s a good starting point. We all know the weaknesses from last season, and if he can remove some of them, then we stand a better chance in games,

Obviously, the last year of Edwards time at Luton was difficult. But he has had time away to reflect on that, and hopefully he will have looked at the reasons behind it and learnt from it. The club have a tough job in getting the fans back on board, as last season was demoralising. But it’s a job that must be done, as the only way to move forward is to have the team and the fans fighting the same fight

Phil Spencer

I’m happy with the appointment of Rob Edwards. I know that lots of fans aren’t convinced by the appointment because of the way things ended at Luton Town but in my opinion, he’s responsible for one of the biggest managerial successes in recent years after getting them into the Premier League.

One thing I like about Edwards is his communication style. He’s clear, driven and passionate and they’re all things that were missing under Michael Carrick. If he can showcase that on a regular basis, I think that he’ll do a good job of winning fans over.

The atmosphere at the Riverside Stadium was pretty apathetic at the end of last season and I feel like Edwards needs to get off to a strong start to get fans onside. Providing that he does that, I think fans will warm to him and he will prove to be a successful appointment.

As well as hearing their views on particular Boro topics on Teesside Live each week, you can also hear from them further on their respective platforms. Phil Spencer runs his own Youtube channel which you can subscribe to here. Chris Cassidy is part of the Boropolis Podcast, Dana Malt is part of the Boro Breakdown Podcast, and John Donovan is part of the Twe12th Man Podcast, all of which you can listen to on all major podcast outlets.

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