'I was crying for 30 minutes': Aitor Karanka opens up on Middlesbrough promotion

Karanka, now at Championship rivals Nottingham Forest, gave an open and honest account of his time at the Riverside Stadium in an interview with The Coaches' Voice.The Spaniard led Middlesbrough to promotion back to the top flight in 2016 after a tumultuous campaign which saw him consider ending his time at the club as the end of the season approached.

Despite the 45-year-old storming out of training in March following an arguement, he eventually returned to help Boro secure second place in the second tier and a return to the Premier League after a seven-year absence.

For Karanka, it was a real high in his managerial career - and he has now opened up on the overwhelming nature of clinching promotion.

"As a player, you celebrate every single thing like it is the last day of your life, and as a coach it is completely different," he admitted.

"As a player, you can be running five minutes or ten minutes with the crowd on the pitch.

"And as a coach, I went to my office and I was crying for 30 minutes because it's been one year working for that moment.

"You have 25 players who have been working for you, you have 30,000 who have been supporting you and you feel responsible for everything, especially when you lose the games.

"When you get something as a coach, you are not the protagonist. The protagonists are the crowd, the players.

"So it's just to think that, okay, the job has been done, but [what is] the next challenge."