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One of the biggest differences between being a manager now and when I started out 33 years ago is the amount of data used by football clubs.

So much of the modern game is driven by it and not just in the recruitment of players – it’s also used for looking after them, in the medical and sports science departments too.

It has led to some amazing innovations since I began my time in the dugout at Bournemouth in 1992 – the same year the Premier League era began – but I would argue there are many ways it has made a manager’s job harder, not easier, compared to what is now viewed as old-school.

When I look back at those early days, there were only three people running the club – the chairman, secretary and manager.

Now it has changed completely.

Running alongside the first team and reserves, you’ve got an academy for boys and girls, a medical department, a fitness team and of course recruitment too. Each can consist of an army of workers, who are driven and directed by heads of department.

They are all separate entities striving to meet their own objectives and they often build different identities too, with data dictating the direction.

And, while before they were totally in control, the managers or head coaches of today are often subservient to the people running these departments, and their decisions.

What I find interesting is to see how many of those other people leave the club when the manager gets sacked, when they have had such a big influence on the culture of it.

Each head of department now is instructed and guided by the director of football, who usually works especially closely with recruitment – an area that is almost certainly data driven.

I am going to sound like a dinosaur again here, but I signed hundreds of players during more than three decades as a manager, and not one of those signings was data driven – unless you count the database that existed in my own head.

That database was based on my own information I gathered each week, watching live league, reserve and non-league games, and making contacts with different scouts and managers from every level. In those days, being at training at 8am each morning and getting home past midnight was expected, and most managers then did the same.

We had a network of scouts in different parts of the country but we still did a lot of travelling to speak to people about players they had seen, young and old.

If a player was recommended to me, I would always try to follow it up by watching him at least three times, with two of those occasions being away from home because I always believed that if he was a good character, that aspect would shine more in away games.

In those pre-internet days, the Rothmans Football Yearbook was my bible, and it was priceless for identifying information on players from every team in the league.

I started out as a player-coach at Bournemouth under Harry Redknapp and he showed me the value of having that knowledge.

I managed the recruitment at all my clubs. I would tell my scouts and coaches what I wanted and then did my homework on their recommendations and watched them in action.

The more the years passed, the more noise there would be in this area from other people inside the club, but I always insisted on being the person who made the final decision.

My scouts and coaches knew exactly what type of players I wanted for each position. I often saw good players, but did not try to sign them because they did not fit the identity of the team I was managing at the time.

Ideally, that kind of thinking is used in the data-driven model which is prevalent today – where the profile of signings is aligned to the identity of the club and what the manager needs.

Brighton, Brentford and Bournemouth are good examples of where it has worked brilliantly, but there are a few more established Premier League clubs who have not used it as successfully.

It is amazing how they unearth these players, and it is having access to this information that has turned the Premier League into a world league, where more than 65% of its players are foreign.

But, irrespective of having data as an incredible tool to discover new talent, being a dinosaur I would still always insist on viewing the player before they were signed, and I am sure most managers now would want that too.

If the player I signed did not fit the bill, and there were many, then I was more than happy to raise my hand and accept full responsibility.

It does not always happen that way anymore, however, and it has irked me to hear that some of the players brought in to a club have not had the manager’s approval, or even been seen by him.

Unless everything is joined up, you are never going to be successful.

Young managers today often don’t know anything different but when I speak to them about this, I always remind them that at the end of the day, it is you who is in front of the dugout when your team is playing, and because it’s your job that’s on the line, then the team should be of your making.

The same issues apply to the sports science and medical departments, who have come to the fore in most professional clubs.

In my day, and especially early in my management career, I had a very simple and successful guide to know whether my fitness work was effective or not. If my players were moaning and sweating, I knew they were working hard enough!

Every department I have mentioned has grown not only in size but also in expense. They each have a specific and important role, reflected by their cost to the club, and for me as a manager it was important each head of department was made accountable for their actions.

I always felt fitness coaches and sports science departments should be challenged. They are vitally important to the manager’s preparation so should shoulder responsibility for fitness levels and certain injuries.

For example, injuries to knees, ankles and joints were always looked on differently to muscular injuries which, for me, were definitely classed as preventable.

I worked with some fantastic doctors and medical teams, but they always knew they were working for the benefit of the club and not for the comfort of injured players.

That was my thinking when we built a new training ground at Stoke. I only wanted two beds in the medical room but by the time they had finished it, there were five. I went to the club’s chairman, Peter Coates, who said, ‘what’s the problem?’.

I said, ‘Peter, if you have two beds, you’ll have two people injured in there. If you have five beds, there will be five of them lying there, because it is a comfort room for people who are not in the team and it breeds the wrong culture’.

In the end I got what I wanted – two beds – and if you were not injured you were banned from going in. I didn’t want anyone at my club thinking that an easy-ozy attitude was acceptable – and I’d stand by that today.

The amount of data used by football clubs is one of the biggest differences between my time as a manager and when I first started out 33 years ago.

It drives a lot of modern sport, not just the recruitment of players, but also the care of them in both the sports science and medical departments.

Since I first started working in the dugout at Bournemouth in 1992, the same year the Premier League era began, there have been some amazing innovations made, but I would argue that there are many ways it has made a manager’s job harder, not easier, than what is currently viewed as old-school.

The chairman, secretary, and manager were the only three people in charge of the club when I think back to those early days.

It has completely changed now.

Along with the first team and reserves, there is a recruiting department, a medical department, a fitness team, and of course, an academy for boys and girls. An army of workers, led and led by department heads, can make up each.

They are all distinct entities striving to achieve their own goals, and data frequently guides their development.

And while they once had complete control, today’s managers or head coaches are frequently subservient to those in charge of these departments and make their decisions.

When the manager is fired, and given how much of an impact they have had on the club’s culture, what I find fascinating to watch how many of those people leave the club.

The director of football, who typically works particularly closely with recruitment, an area that is almost certainly data-driven, instructs and guides each department head.

Even though I signed hundreds of players as a manager for more than three decades, none of them were data-driven, unless you add the database I had in my own head.

Based on the information I personally collected each week, watching live league, reserve, and non-league games, and making contacts with various scouts and managers of all levels, was the basis of that database. Typically, managers would expect to arrive at training at 8 am each morning and return home after midnight.

Despite having a network of scouts spread out across the nation, we still frequently spoke with people about both young and old players they had seen.

I would always try to follow up a player’s recommendation by watching him at least three times, with the exception of two outings because I always believed that if a player had a good character, that aspect would shine more in away games.

The Rothmans Football Yearbook was my bible in those days before there was an internet connection, and it provided invaluable information on players from all league teams.

Under Harry Redknapp, I first learned the value of having that knowledge when I first started out as a player-coach at Bournemouth.

At all of my clubs, I oversaw the hiring process. I would let my scouts and coaches know what I wanted, then I would research their ideas and watch them get in action.

More noise would be made in this area from other members of the club as the years went on, but I always vowed to be the one to make the final choice.

My scouts and coaches were aware of the players I wanted for each position. I frequently saw talented players, but I never attempted to sign them because they defied the team identity I was in charge of at the time.

In the data-driven model that is used today, where the profile of signings is based on the club’s identity and what the manager needs, that kind of thinking should be applied.

There are some more well-known Premier League clubs that haven’t used it as effectively, but Brighton, Brentford, and Bournemouth are good examples of where it has worked brilliantly.

The Premier League has become a world league with over 65% of its players being foreign players, which is amazing how they discovered these players.

Being a dinosaur, I would still always insist on watching the player before signing them, and I’m sure most managers now would want that as well, despite the fact that data is an incredible resource for finding new talent.

I was more than happy to accept full responsibility for the player I signed if he or she did not fit the bill, and there were many.

However, it doesn’t always go that way anymore, and it has irritated me to learn that some of the players brought in haven’t even seen the manager.

You will never succeed unless everything is joined up.

Young managers today frequently don’t know anything about this, but when I speak with them about it, I always remind them that when your team is playing, you are in charge of the dugout, and that because it’s your job that’s in your hands, the team should be made of your own.

The same problems are present in most professional clubs’ sports science and medical departments.

I had a very straightforward and successful guide at the time of my management career to determine whether or not my fitness work was successful. I was aware that my players were working hard enough even if they were moaning and sweating.

Every department I’ve mentioned has grown both financially and physically. They each play a distinct and significant role, which is demonstrated by how much they cost the club, and it was important for me to hold each department head accountable for their actions.

I’ve always believed that sports science departments and fitness coaches should be challenged. They should bear responsibility for fitness levels and some injuries because they are crucial to the manager’s preparation.

For instance, knee, ankle, and joint injuries were always viewed differently from muscular injuries, which were unquestionably preventable, in my opinion.

Some fantastic doctors and medical teams knew what they were doing, but they never seemed to care about the club’s goals or the comfort of their ill players.

When we constructed a new training facility in Stoke, I thought about doing that. The medical room had five beds by the time they finished it, compared to the two I only wanted. What’s the issue, I asked the club’s chairman, Peter Coates, who was speaking to me. ‘.

Peter, I said to you, “If you have two beds, you’ll have two people injured there.” Because it serves as a comfort zone for those who are not members of the team and fosters the wrong culture, there will be five of them lying there.

In the end, I received my desired two beds, and I was not permitted to enter if I wasn’t hurt. I would continue to support that attitude if I didn’t want anyone to think that an easy-ozy attitude was acceptable.