Former West Bromwich Albion boss Alan Irvine admits the transition from football coach to manager was tough to make.

Irvine left the club at the end of December when they were a point clear of the bottom three.

"I spent a long time in coaching and as an assistant before I became a manager," he told Sky Sports. "I honestly thought I knew what the job would be like.

"I had five-and-a-half years as David Moyes' assistant; I worked really closely with him during that time. I worked as a first team coach at Newcastle United under Kenny Dalglish.

"I was a youth team coach and an academy director, and I thought if anybody knew what was coming next it would be me. But you don't know until you sit in the chair.

"It's a real shock when you actually go and do it. All of a sudden you're the person everybody wants. Everything comes to you and you get dragged from pillar to post.

"There are times when you feel as though you can't actually concentrate on the job that you're trying to do. That was one of the things that were better at West Brom, the set up there allowed me to focus just on the football."