WHEN Gareth Southgate turns towards the Tottenham dug-out this afternoon, he could be forgiven for thinking, 'There but for the grace of God go I'. Or, perhaps more pertinently, 'There but for the wisdom of Steve Gibson'.

Ten days ago, Spurs chairman Daniel Levy dismissed manager Martin Jol to end a two-month whispering campaign that had already seen a senior Tottenham delegation interview current boss, Juande Ramos, behind the Dutchman's back.

Despite leading the London club to successive fifth-placed finishes in the Premier League - their best domestic performance for more than two decades - Jol was deemed to have failed when Spurs picked up just seven points from their opening 11 league matches.

Middlesbrough have claimed eight, and have also lost at White Hart Lane in the third round of the Carling Cup. Yet you will not find Southgate being ushered towards the exit door at the Riverside Stadium.

Whereas Levy demanded an instant return on his significant summer investment, Gibson, his counterpart on Teesside, is much more interested in long-term development. Just as Rome wasn't a built in a day, so the Middlesbrough chairman feels the fortunes of a football club are not determined by a handful of matches.

Such perspective is unusual in the cut-throat world of the Premier League, but it has meant that Gibson has worked with just three permanent managers in the last 12 years. After decades of yo-yoing between leagues, perhaps it is no co-incidence that Middlesbrough have spent all but one of those years in the top-flight.

"There's an expectation that, after four or five results, people will go," said Southgate, who previously benefited from his chairman's unwavering support when he was appointed despite lacking the requisite coaching qualifications. "I think it is ludicrous.

"Martin Jol had two fifth-placed finishes, but I suppose we don't know what went on behind the scenes. Every club appears different, but I only know the way our club is.

"We are trying to build something here and I know that there are few successful clubs that haven't had stability."

The closeness of Southgate's relationship with Gibson undoubtedly contributes to that stability. It means that the former does not make unrealistic demands in terms of transfer funds or contractual agreements, and ensures the latter is not demanding results and achievements that are all but unattainable.

The pair work closely, not on a day-to-day level whereby Gibson could be assuming a counter-productive role in transfer policy and selection, but on a longer-term strategic basis, with both manager and chairman formulating a set of aims and targets that pay little heed to the following weekend's results.

"You have to have faith and trust and I know the instruction I have been given," explained Southgate. "I know the aims of the chairman and he also knows I'm someone who is committed for as long as he wants me.

"That helps because he knows that I view everything we spend as important. There is a mutual understanding of where we want to go and how we want to go.

"He shares my view. It's pointless me having ideas and ideals about what I want to happen if they are not shared by the chairman. We discuss everything of that nature and I think it's very important.

"The vision of the manager and the chairman have to combine otherwise there'll always be a clash."

Such unity, however, should not be interpreted as a carte blanche for Southgate to jeopardise Gibson's considerable investment in the club.

If Middlesbrough lose this afternoon's home game, they will tumble into the relegation zone for the first time since the second week of the 2004-05 season.

There would be no knee-jerk reaction if Southgate's side was to enter the bottom three, but his position would gradually become less and less tenable as the weeks went by.

Long-term planning is one thing, but the threat of relegation, and the £30m worth of lost income it would entail, is still sufficient to focus minds.

"Do I feel bullet-proof? Not at all," said Southgate. "Steve is a chairman who is very logical and thoughtful, but he's also aggressive and successful. He's been that way in his businesses and, ultimately, we have to achieve.

"Last year, I was given the job of staying in this division and it was made clear it could cost us £30m if I didn't. Enough said. If we don't produce results, then of course people are going to call my position into question.

"Football is a weird industry because the chairman has to decide if the buys have been right, the sales right, the style right, even if there are key players missing.

"I have a chairman who understands. We know the rate of progress that can be made and, when people say I am fortunate to have this job, that is why I am fortunate."

As he continues his current exile from professional football today, Jol would no doubt agree.