AFTER entering the fourth year of his reign as Middlesbrough head coach, Aitor Karanka is still learning about life on Teesside and how to improve. He has had more ups than downs during that time, but he has tried to learn from them all.

As Karanka presided over a midweek training session at the club’s Rockliffe Park, he was happy enough to take time out and explain his reasons for certain drills and decisions. For instance, despite a tendency to play Victor Valdes in goal, he involved all four of his first team squad goalkeepers.

He explained the importance of keeping everyone involved, like fielding Gaston Ramirez in a different coloured bib as he floated between teams because he was protecting an injury. Given that this session was days before last Monday’s victory over Hull when he was the match-winner, it was a move that helped.

Whether it was the warm up passing drill, the small-sided,three touch games played over two pitches or the larger match played with four goals each protected by a goalkeeper, the intensity was there. All of the players involved clearly knew what was expected of them. Attitudes on the training ground, Karanka says, is crucial when it comes down to team selection.

He said: “I thought as a player, and now as a coach, that you play the games in the way you train every day. It's impossible not to train at 100 per cent and play 100 per cent.

“If you want to play 100 per cent you have to train like that, we try to motivate them with different exercises, and the main thing for me is to be organised. The player is always testing the coach, they know we have everything under control.”

Confidence on the training ground is relatively high again. Middlesbrough had narrowly missed out on three points at defending champions Leicester City and had given Chelsea, Manchester City and Arsenal a run for their money.

Since sitting down with Karanka on this particular afternoon, Boro have also picked up three points by defeating Hull to climb up to 13th and four points clear of the relegation zone. Almost every game allows him a decent amount of time to prepare properly for, unlike the strains of the Championship.

He said: “It's completely different as in the Championship it was games and recovery sessions, then two days later you have another game. It was one or two days to recover and the third day was to prepare for the game.

“Now you play on Saturday and have seven days to prepare for games, now we have a new analyst and better technology, we're filming the training sessions and we have much more time to work, to prepare and to recover.”

A lot has changed since last May, but plenty has remained the same. Despite a huge influx of new players over the summer, he has tried to keep things very similar in terms of the day-to-day sessions. On this occasion he looks on from the sidelines, but he is a coach who likes to be involvd – and being in the mix helps his own development too.

Karanka said: “For me I can't understand people who don’t. I used to be a player and my philosophy is that I can't understand why the manager would arrive just for the game, because the training session when I'm not there would not be the same.

“The players and staff are amazing but always the coach and the boss is there. This group needs a lot of things from me, my spirit. You remember last season when we drew against Fulham and I was (sulking) the following two days. I was expecting a reaction and the following game we lost in the last minute.

“After the game they told me 'we can't see you in that way' because I was waiting for the reaction. But this group needs to be inspired. If I want something in the next game I have to be there and to say this or that ...”

Even though there are less matches in the Premier League than in the Championship, he still finds it difficult to switch off. As he reflected in the cosy and warm surroundings of the training ground, he explained how he has much more to think about now.

He said: “My wife said in the second season 'it's tough'. I said 'no'. She said 'you have to do a lot of things'. I said 'no'. The training sessions, the games, the doctor, the players ... five six things, she said 'it's too much.'

“The doctors are coming to me saying 'he is tired and maybe he needs one day off'. Sometimes, in the Championship, a player after 40 games, ten yellow cards – four days off, they couldn't believe it. Because if the doctor says he needs a rest and we say 'no, he trains' and then he is injured.

“It is completely different when you are a player. When you wake up, when you go to bed. When you are a player it's you and maybe in the meetings they say you have to mark Viduka or Ronaldo and I have to do this or that.

“As a manager you have been training for five days but I always say for the two hours of a game you can't control the players. I don't know if one player has had an argument with his wife or whatever. You are a coach and when you think that everything is perfect something you can't control can happen.”