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Steve Gibson says he has made his biggest signing of the summer by agreeing a new deal with Aitor Karanka.

The Boro chairman revealed he was delighted that the head coach has sealed a new four year contract at the club.

The pair agreed in the aftermath of the play-off defeat at Wembley that if Boro were to win promotion and then flourish in the Premier League solid foundations must be laid.

And central to that was long term stability in the dug-out.

The manager and chairman quickly agreed a new deal and the paperwork was finally signed off this week.

And Gibson is delighted.

He said the new deal was important to the stability of the club in the coming campaign and the years to come.

“This is massive statement of the commitment Aitor has to this club,” said the chairman.

“For me this is probably the most important signing we will make all summer.

“We know that there has been interest in Aitor over the past year or so from clubs both here and abroad and rightly so because he is a very, very good manager.

(Image: Peter Reimann)

“When that speculation has arisen he has always been quick to say that he is happy here and working in the best place.

“Signing this new four deal underlines that quite clearly.

“It gives us a lot of stability going into the new season and the coming years.”

And Gibson added that he believed the players will be delighted at the news.

“Everyone at the club will be very happy,” he said, “All the players and the staff here think the world of him.

“They admire and respect Aitor and the honest and principled way he goes about his business.

“He has to make some tough decisions at times but he always makes them fairly and with the good of the team in mind.”

And he added the deal was easy to broker because the Spaniard had been overwhelmed by the welcome he had received in the area.

“Aitor is very happy here, his family is happy here and he is putting down roots,” said Gibson. “He is very quickly becoming a Teessider.

“He made a big decision to come here to another country and out of his comfort zone and has been overwhelmed by the welcome he has had from supporters and from people across the area. He has been touched.

“He understands the important role the team plays in the area and the passion people feel for Middlesbrough Football Club - and he shares that.”

Karanka arrived in November 2013 after the sacking of Tony Mowbray with the side struggling but after a sluggish start his reorganised side finished with a final flourish to end up in 12th place.

Last season was his first full campaign and Boro flirted with automatic promotion all term before falling just short and ending up in the play-offs and ultimately defeat at Wembley.

“Personally I am absolutely delighted that Aitor has committed to us for the long term.

“I am sure he will bring success to this football club.”