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Aitor Karanka has paid a special tribute to Middlesbrough FC’s captain fantastic Grant Leadbitter , saying the skipper has got “balls”.

The 30-year-old midfielder revealed in the aftermath of Boro’s promotion-clinching draw with Brighton that he’d been playing with injections due to the pain he was suffering from a troublesome injury.

Karanka later confirmed that Leadbitter has a hernia problem and will undergo surgery to cure it this week.

“I have said, I don’t know know how many times, Grant is the character of this team, he’s the captain, nobody knows how much he’s suffered to play the last three or four or five games with a lot of pain in the training sessions – but he has balls.

“He’s a character and for that reason, with players like him, players supporting him and players following him, that’s why we are in the Premier League.”