MIDDLESBROUGH manager Aitor Karanka has thanked the club’s owner Steve Gibson for the ‘unexpected’ signing of Blackburn Rovers striker Jordan Rhodes.

Karanka felt he had the ‘perfect’ squad even before the deadline day arrival of Rhodes who is set to make his Boro debut against Rovers at the Riverside Stadium tomorrow.

So the Spaniard accepts the capture of the £11m man means he simply must lead last season’s beaten play-off finalists to promotion.

Karanka, who had a summer bid for Rhodes turned down, said: “When we tried in August and at the end we couldn’t bring him here, we started to work with the new players.

“At the beginning of January he wasn’t on the list as I didn’t want to spend that amount of money when I needed different positions – a midfielder, a defender, and when Diego (Fabbrini) left I needed a number 10. For that reason he wasn’t on the list but at the end, when every player I had asked for arrived, we tried again and we were right.

“I don’t always want to speak about Steve as I can’t say any more good things about him. When you’re not expecting anything more he arrives with Jordan Rhodes.

“Sometimes I can understand how jealous other managers are because on January 30 I had my squad perfect – and then Rhodes arrived.

“The pressure is now on me. This season, I don’t want to say there are any excuses. I’ve got the best squad, for sure, it’s not the cheapest one – other teams have spent more money than us – but the aim is promotion. If we don’t get promotion, it’s my fault.”