Less than 24 hours after a narrow 1-0 defeat against Chelsea, Nigel Pearson had watched the whole match back on video and started to plan for West Brom’s next game against Charlton.

"You can’t rest on your laurels you can when you are down at the bottom," smiles Pearson, who left the coaching staff of The FA to join West Brom as Bryan Robson’s number two earlier this season.

"We played at Chelsea on the Tuesday night, got back home in the early hours of the morning and the lads came in on the Wednesday for a warm-down. For the management team, it was a case of starting to prepare for Saturday’s game against Charlton.

"It’s different to when I started playing but the culture is different. When you are working to stay in the Premiership, the margin of error is small and you try and give as much attention to detail as possible.

"I have always enjoyed the tactical side of the game. I am lucky that Bryan includes me in everything and we work closely together and I am there to give him my input and support, whether it is coaching on the training ground or helping to assess our next opponents."

Pearson is a mix of modern coaching techniques and belief in traditional values.

"It’s a very good thing that we’ve learned from the continental influx in this country and started to really develop our coaching," he says.

"I think we have the talent in this country and I can see a time in the future where English coaches aren’t just doing well in this country but also working abroad.

"A lot of clubs use Prozone and similar facilities and we do at West Brom.

At the same time, dealing with people is a lot of the job as it is being a manager in other professions.

"Bryan and myself are naturally positive people and it’s important to keep lively and confident when you are involved in a relegation struggle.

"The mood of the players has been good. Even though we lost at Chelsea, there was almost a buoyant atmosphere the next morning because they could sense we had done well against one of the best teams in Europe. There are a lot of good signs coming from the club."

Pearson was a player under Robson when Middlesbrough reached two cup finals and got relegated in the same season.

"It’s hard to compare the situations. The season at Middlesbrough was almost unique.

"The most important is to be upbeat and encourage the players, you need that to get the best out of people. Bryan has bounced back from things throughout his career. We always feel the glass is half-full rather than half-empty and we will keep going.

"This group have given themselves a chance of staying up."