Karanka out to keep Ben as Blues lurk

Aitor Karanka would like to keep Ben Gibson at Middlesbrough for his entire career amid speculation that Chelsea are lining him up as a £30million replacement for John Terry.

Such has been Gibson’s form since helping Boro to win back their place in the Premier League that he has been linked with both the Blues and Everton in recent weeks, with England boss Gareth Southgate also monitoring his progress closely.

Head coach Karanka has worked hard to keep the 23-year-old central defender’s feet firmly on the ground – and local boy Gibson has shown few signs of allowing himself to be carried away by the attention he is receiving – and is desperate to retain his services for as long as he can.

The Spaniard said: “it’s always important to keep a player like Gibbo.

“[He’s] from the academy, from the city, someone who knows everything here. He is a good example for the academy players and I would like to keep him here all his career. But football is football.”

Gibson has played every minute of Boro’s 20 Premier League games to date.

Hartlepool United have been issued with a third winding-up order in less than eight months.

But the League Two club’s chairman Gary Coxall is insisting the matter has been “sorted”.

The court case is understood to surround the same issue which plagued the club two months ago – an unpaid tax bill.