Pulling into his driveway the night before Christmas Eve, Garry Monk took the phone call that would change his festive plans in an instant.
His Middlesbrough side had won 2-1 at Sheffield Wednesday earlier in the afternoon, but as he returned to his Yarm home in the evening, owner Steve Gibson informed him that his tenure was over after only six months in the job.
Inside his family home a ‘movie-style Christmas scene’ was playing out, as the in-laws and cousins toasted their glasses and children played board games. Monk’s dismissal altered the mood and he then needed to inform his backroom team of the decision.