Aitor Karanka met Roberto Martínez for the first time only a month ago but the pair have been behaving like old friends for two years now.
In November 2013, when Karanka embarked on life as Middlesbrough’s manager, a letter was waiting for him on his training ground desk. It was handwritten and from his Everton counterpart and fellow Spaniard.
“On my first day Roberto sent me a letter to say welcome and congratulations,” said Karanka, whose second-placed Championship side are at home to Martínez’s Everton in a Capital One Cup quarter-final on Tuesday night.
“Roberto is a person I have to thank a lot. He was the first one who I was speaking with when I arrived here. He helped me a lot because at the beginning it was difficult for me. I had a conversation with him and that conversation helped me to improve and settle in here. I have a really good relationship with him now. He is a good example for me and he is the mirror I am looking at.
“I remember one thing he said to me. We were playing against Hull City in the cup and he told me: ‘I know in Spain teams don’t put out their best teams in the cup because it is not as important as the league, but here in England it is different.’ That helped me because I was thinking of playing other players.
“Roberto also said if the players feel the manager can bring them something, they are always going to follow you. At the time it was difficult for me because I tried to change a few things and results didn’t arrive. But I kept working in the same way because I had that conversation with him.”
Remarkably it took until this autumn for the pair to meet. “The first time we were together face to face was one month ago in Spain,” said Karanka. “For my coaching licence I had to do a course and he was there to do a conference. That was the first time we were together. Before it was just by letters and by phone.
“We speak the same language and that same language is football. He arrived here 20 years ago and I have always followed him because I thought he was doing a very interesting thing here. He speaks English perfectly. He was always a good example for me. He knows everything and is much more experienced than me.”
Such admiration and gratitude will not prevent Karanka attempting to outdo his mentor in front of a packed Riverside. Quite apart from the obvious incentive, the former Real Madrid defender wants to win the game for Alastair Brownlee, the immensely popular, long-serving Boro commentator on BBC Radio Tees who was recently diagnosed with bowel cancer.
“In the last round at Manchester United we had extra motivation because of the Redcar steelworkers who were losing their jobs,” said Karanka. “Now we have extra motivation for our friend Ali. People here are really committed to this club. They can forget their problems when the team are winning and for this reason we are working hard.”
