AITOR KARANKA could be hit with a ban if found guilty of an FA misconduct charge, but the Middlesbrough head coach insists he will not scale down his passionate ways on the touchline.

Karanka was sent to the stands last weekend by referee Mark Clattenburg because of his over-zealous reaction to Rudy Gestede’s late equaliser for Blackburn Rovers.

The Spaniard has admitted the charge and requested a personal hearing, leaving him clear to be involved at Millwall today, but the wait goes on to discover the extent of his punishment.

Boro had cause to feel aggrieved when Gestede fired in a stoppage time leveller after former Sunderland striker Chris Brown had clearly shoved goalkeeper Dimi Konstantopoulos in the back as he attempted to gather a cross.

Team-mate Ben Gibson was also being climbed on by Shane Duffy, and Karanka says the day he stops questioning similar decisions will be the day he walks away from football.

“I will have to change the way I react to decisions,” he admitted. “I was the first person to hold my hands up and say I had made a mistake.

“I apologised to my players in the changing room, because I knew I had done something bad. I made a mistake.

“I am sure it isn’t going to happen again. I am not happy with my behaviour. It wasn’t good, but the day I see something similar to what I saw last weekend and I don’t have a reaction, I can no longer work in football.

“I am passionate, I like my players to be passionate and if I see three fouls in one and don’t have that reaction I will go home.”

Should Karanka receive a touchline ban, questions have been raised over who will take over his duties after assistant Craig Hignett left his position on Tuesday.

Goalkeeping coach Leo Percovich and fitness coach Carlos Cachada are likely to step forward with no real rush to appoint a successor to Hignett, and the Boro boss is confident he has enough staff to support him.

He said: “I have not thought about it yet, because I don’t know the ban. Someone told me it might just be a warning. If it is more than that I have to think, but I have no concerns because we have enough people on the staff and a lot of good coaches to support me.

“The Under-21 coach (Paul Jenkins) is very good. The team is in the highest position so I am not concerned.”

Today’s trip to the Den is followed by crucial games with fellow promotion hopefuls Derby and Ipswich, but Karanka doesn’t believe that places extra pressure on his side to get a result in London.

“We don’t have pressure about games next week or the week after. We only worry about the game on Saturday and that is against Millwall.

“After that there will be pressure for the Derby game, but we must focus on getting a result in our next game.

“December is the most difficult month because we are now in December. When we are in January that will be the most difficult month.

“Now I am more comfortable because the things that can happen from here I have a lift from last season. We know which way we were working last season so we know what happens from here until the end.”

The Teessiders remain in the promotion mix despite failing to win their last three games. Missed chances have led to missed opportunities in the games against Bournemouth, Wigan and Blackburn, but the former defender is not concerned.

He said: “This is a problem but it is not the main thing for me. Last season we went seven games without scoring a goal and I was concerned because we didn't have players to score goals but this season we have a lot of players who can score goals.

“If we missed five or six chances on Saturday I am confident we are going to score more than one goal in the following game so that is not my concern.”