LEO PERCOVICH insists he is ready to become a head coach – and is using his current caretaker spell in charge of Middlesbrough to show the club’s rulers what he is capable of achieving if he was handed the job on a permanent basis.

Percovich was appointed as interim boss in the immediate aftermath of Chris Wilder’s dismissal earlier this month, and is heading up a coaching team that also comprises Craig Liddle, Mark Tinkler and Lee Cattermole.

The Uruguayan has presided over a win and a defeat during his temporary spell in charge, and has been tasked with overseeing tomorrow’s home game with Blackburn Rovers, when Boro will attempt to haul themselves away from their current position on the brink of the relegation zone.

Boro’s search for a permanent successor to Wilder has effectively been placed on hold, after a week that saw talks with Michael Carrick break down without an agreement and Cattermole emerge as a surprise favourite to get the job.

Percovich’s position would be strengthened if he was to claim a second successive home victory tomorrow, and having held a number of different positions on Boro’s backroom team as well spending time in a senior coaching position with Brazilian side Fluminense, the 54-year-old feels he is ready for the responsibilities of being a head coach.

“Of course, I want to be a manager one day,” said Percovich. “I didn’t expect this situation to come now, but I had an offer when I was in Brazil to keep coaching in Brazil, but I rejected it to come back to Middlesbrough. That was to support Jonathan Woodgate, and to work with and support the club in any position where they need me.

“That was my decision. During the time I’ve been here, especially with so many changes after Covid, I have had other offers to go as a coach to other big clubs in Brazil. But I rejected them again because I feel comfortable here.

“Now, the time is arriving for me to say, ‘Leo, you have to run the team. You have to be the caretaker’. So, I have to bring the best I have from my experiences, my football view and my knowledge, not just from my passion because they are two different things.

“This is the time – and I don’t know how long it will last for – for me to share things and show what I can do. You need to show what you have got in your backpack and your luggage, and what you have learned over all these years.”

While Steve Gibson agreed to the creation of a temporary coaching structure also involving Liddle, Tinkler and Cattermole, Percovich has ultimate responsibility for picking the team that will start tomorrow’s game and devising the tactics his side will adopt.

He has encouraged input from those around him, but the final decision over all matters relating to personnel, formation and substitutions will be his. For all that this has been a collegiate set-up, Percovich is at pains to stress that he is running the show.

“There is a group of us working together, but ultimately, this is my team,” he explained. Absolutely. I listen to the people I am working with, with respect and attention. If people are telling me something, I need to know why and understand their reasons.

“Give me your valued arguments, and I will consider all of them, but at the end, when it comes to the final line-up and the way we are going to play, it is my decision. That is very clear.”