Great start but I can’t do miracles
PULIS GIVES BORO A PROMOTION WARNING
TONY PULIS’S arrival at Middlesbrough as their new manager yesterday was swiftly followed by a victory over Bolton Wanderers that moved them closer to a Championship play-off spot.
Pulis refused to take credit, though their goals from Martin Braithwaite and Britt Assombalonga came after he left his seat alongside chairman Steve Gibson in the stand to talk to the players at half-time.
And although he was pleased with the result, Pulis is experienced enough to know this is not the time to make extravagant predictions about what he can achieve at the Riverside.
He said: ‘ I’m not going to turn water into wine. I have to make sure that I have a good look at the place before I start making any predictions. I will say that there was some very good play from us. I liked the attitude in the dressing room at half-time, too, it was very good.’
Pulis and Gibson had talked on the phone after the dismissal of Garry Monk but met for the first time yesterday. Pulis left home on the south coast at 6am to travel to Teesside and by noon he had agreed to sign an 18-month contract.
‘The remit is to have a look at the club, and see what I think,’ Pulis said. ‘Then I’ll speak to Steve about how we can improve it. Obviously, the team is the most important thing. We need to get back into the Premier League as quickly as possible. I’m under no illusions — you have to win games — but Steve wants me to have a good look, not only at the team, but at the whole of the club. ‘I’ve watched only one game. I had a chat with the lads at halftime and I’ve just been in after the whistle as well. I need to get to work. I need to get them out on the training ground, and we need to get to work.
‘There’s a lot more money in the Championship than there was when I first came into the division. There are a lot more foreign owners now than there were at that time too. Everybody is aspiring to get to the Premier League.
‘Everybody wants to hit that Premier League but unfortunately for Middlesbrough, getting there and then dropping out was a massive misfortune for the club. It’s trying to get them back. I know it’s not going to be easy.’