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SummaryWelcome to live coverage of Daniel Farke's pre-Middlesbrough press conference, set to get underway at 1.15pm (UK).
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DF: [On Chelsea situation] My first thoughts are with Frank Lampard. They had a transfer embargo when he joined, and he helped the club through a difficult time. He led many exciting young talents and was a breath of fresh air, it's always sad when clubs and manager part ways.

DF: I know Thomas Tuchel quite well from my time in Dortmund. He is a world-class coach and a really good fit for Chelsea. He has worked for two clubs used to winning, Borussia Dortmund and Paris Saint Germain. He knows what he has to do at a club where the pressure is on. He's won everything you can win in France and reached the Champions League final.

DF: When Spain were unbelievably successful, a lot of Spanish coaches moved around the world. The picture swapped a bit after Germany won the World Cup and then that's the time when people are interested in German coaches.

DF: I wouldn't judge a coach by his passport. I would judge them on their tactics, personality and man-management.

DF: I have a lot of respect Neil Warnock. I love characters and he's a role model for a lot of coaches. He's been successful for so many years and the fire still is burning.

DF: He's always greedy on the sideline but also unbelievably nice to everyone. I look forward to seeing him.

DF: We want to be a member of the top 26 teams in the whole country. We are in a good path to finish in the top six of the Championship, it's been the best start after 26 games in the history of this club. But we have to keep going. The Championship is about consistency. There are plenty of games to go.

DF: We were not happy with last week. There was disappointment but it's important to find a good balance. Barnsley had their strongest team out and it was a chance for us to rest some key players and give some injured lads a chance for some minutes. We still had a strong team but we had to risk some things. We will now concentrate on our main topic which is the Championship.

DF: We need to rotate and use the whole squad but we can't swap 7/8 positions, it isn't healthy for the team. But I trust my whole squad, we know the load at Championship level but we have many lads who've done it before. With the TV selections, we now have three games in six days with two tough away games. But that's the situation.

DF: There won't be much business. Our key players will stay. We've signed a left-back, we've spoken about the goalkeeper situation and we will stay awake on that. But the transfer market in January is difficult, especially for goalkeepers.

DF: I can confirm that Jordan Hugill has torn his hamstring, he will be out for four weeks. We expect him to be back at the end of February. I can also confirm Kenny McLean is out due to his COVID illness. Kenny is sympton-free, he is still isolating. We respect the rules and he will be back from Sunday. He's physically in a good shape and will be back to help.

DF: Good news on all the other lads. Teemu is back.

DF: It's always great to have Teemu back. Jordan has been our only striker available recently and he's been great. We were a bit concerned but it's only four weeks so it's not too bad. In general, Teemu Pukki and Adam Idah are back available. Christoph Zimmermann and Xavi Quintilla are both available too, Dimitris Giannoulis is also available.

DF: We'll be able to fill the bench which is good for us!

DF: Tuchel is a football workaholic. His tactical knowledge is unbelievably flexible, he can prepare for all options.

DF: We had a great relationship. We worked closely together. We spoke a lot of about the game, exercise and training. I really enjoyed my time with him at Dortmund.

DF: With Marco Stiepermann, we have to be careful. He's back doing individual training but he needs time to build up his immune system again. We'll bring him back when he's ready.

DF: Sam [Byram] is still in the rehab process. It's still difficult, it's a pretty serious injury for him. He's running at the moment but he's still a few weeks away from returning to team training.

DF: We've had a proper training week with lots of lads back, Todd Cantwell is back too. We're looking forward to have the other lads back but at the moment, it's all okay so far.

DF: Dimtris is definitely an option. We have to give new lads time to settle in, but he's a young lad and is in great shape. He's played three full games in January so doesn't need to adapt to our fitness levels too much. He's trained a few times so he's an option for tomorrow.

DF: I love Jacon Sorensen, what he's done for us at left-back has been outstanding. He's so solid but he's offered an attacking threat. In the mid and long-term, he will be a midfield player for us but he is incredibly versatile.

DF: Dimitris is a full-back with lots of quality. He runs in behind and has lots of pace, he'll offer our game a different dimension.

DF: For sure, not one of our key players will leave the club. Tim Krul is back, Daniel Barden has stepped up - if there was no risk of injuries with them, I would be fine. But we have to be prepared for the worst case.

DF: We had more or less three first-team strikers. We always take a deeper look at our academy lads. Tyrese needs to play every week and he needs to step up to League One level, to perhaps be ready for us one day. I was very pleased with how he behaves in the group, he's grown with us but it's the right choice for him to play out on loan.

DF: It's the same with Sebastian Soto, he was struggling to get into the first-team at Hannover last season. It would be a big step up for him to play for us now. He had a good loan and good moments with the USA squad. We brought him back to take a closer look at him. We will see what happens with him, but I don't want to put too much pressure on him.

DF: It will be a tough battle. If there's one team out for a scalp at the top team on an away game, it's a Neil Warnock team. Their seventh and they want to finish in the top six, they've signed Fisher and Bolasie. They've had some injuries in the last few games, but I think their results in the last few games have made our life less easier.

DF: Jacob has got used to the left-back position so quickly but he would need time to get used to his rhythm in the midfield role as well. He's very intelligent but we have lots of competition in those areas, Oliver Skipp, Alex Tettey, Lukas Rupp and Kenny McLean.

DF: The minutes last week have helped the players in training this week. It's difficult for lads coming back in after a long break. We had four or five players not in their rhythm and that's why we were not fluent last week. But the likes of Lukas Rupp and Kieran Dowell grew into the game. They definitely needed the minutes.

DF: It was also important for Przemyslaw Placheta and Onel Hernandez to get minutes as well.

DF: You can't say Teemu is in his best rhythm and we gave him individual sessions at the start of the week but you can tell he's got sharper as the week has gone by. Maybe it was a valuable break for him, he never normally has the chance for a break.

DF: Everyone is always excited to see a new signing in action. When a player is prepared, I'm not afraid to take a risk with them. We have to find the right balance with them.

DF: Adam has grown each and every day. He has a bright future, he's already proved a key member of our squad. He's scored some important goals but over the last couple of months, he's had injuries and COVID situations.

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That's all for today's press conference. Stay tuned to canaries.co.uk and our social channels for more build-up to tomorrow's game.

Posted By: DrDublin, Jan 29, 14:02:14