Mansfield boss Billy Dearden does not like to see former Premier League players walk straight into management posts with top-flight clubs.Dearden, 63, who served almost a 20-year apprenticeship as a coach before landing his first managerial job at Mansfield in 1999, insists it is not a swipe at Middlesbrough's Gareth Southgate ahead of the two sides' FA Cup fourth-round meeting at Field Mill on Saturday.

Former England defender Southgate was appointed Boro boss at the age of 35 in June 2006, five years after joining the club in a £6.5million move from Aston Villa.

Southgate did not possess the necessary UEFA Pro Licence needed to coach in the Premier League, but he was given special dispensation by the league to succeed Steve McClaren and undertake his first managerial appointment.

Dearden believes that gone are the days when managers 'cut their teeth' in the lower leagues.

"Ex-players at the top level that go into management could not do it at a lower level because they couldn't handle it," said Dearden.

"The facilities are a million miles away from those in the Premier League.

"When I came to Mansfield for the first time, we didn't have a training base to report to. The lads would just turn up and not know where we were going to practise. We would just find somewhere to train or find a gym to go to.

"There are still a lot of clubs in our league that are like that. We have been training on a school pitch recently because the weather has made our training pitch unusable.

"A lot of the top managers don't learn their trade in the lower leagues like they used to. But that is the name of the game now, getting big names to carry on from their playing careers.

"Some of them certainly couldn't handle it lower down after playing at the highest level. But they don't need to do they, they are all millionaires by the time they are in their mid-20s."

Dearden's budget means he is struggling to attract new players to Mansfield, who could finish the day bottom of the entire Football League if fellow strugglers Wrexham win at home to Bradford tomorrow.

By contrast, Southgate spent over £18million on players in the summer. But the Mansfield boss insists he is not envious of his Boro counterpart.

"It is tough for us down at the bottom as players won't take a risk on us because they don't know what division we will be playing in next season," said Dearden.

"On top of that, the club is in turmoil just now. It is being taken over then it is not being taken over and there is a lot of uncertainty about who is in charge of the club. It is a difficult situation. The football club is not stable at all.

"The players don't know where the money to pay their wages is coming from, but we have managed to pay their wages and this cup run has helped.

"But despite all that, I don't envy Gareth. I don't envy anything in the game. He was handed the opportunity to start his managerial career at the top and he has done very well."

"If you get approached by the chairman of a top club who then says 'come and manage us' and 'we'll give you a lot of money to spend, you are not going to turn it down are you?"

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