James Perch says he prefers Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink’s coaching methods, as opposed to the old school mentality of some of his former managers.

Perch, who has featured in the Rs last four matches, has complimented the approach his under-fire boss takes to the game, who he says is heavily involved on the training field.

He told the Times: “I think you see with the young managers that they’re so enthusiastic with their new ideas and what not, they want to be on the training ground.

“Jimmy is very similar to Chris Hughton [who I played under at Newcastle] in that respect.

“He’s very hands on and always wants to be on the training ground and involved with everything.”

He continued: “I’ve worked with old school managers who aren’t taking training sessions and you might not see them until Thursday morning after a Saturday game.

“Then I’ve worked with a couple who want to do everything – take training, do the warm up and spend as much time as they can on the training pitch, whereas the older experienced managers let the coaches take the training sessions.

“I’m used to not seeing the managers until Thursday but it’s nice to see the manager in all day, every day - I much prefer that.

“If you asked someone like Clint Hill last year, he might say he doesn’t mind seeing the manager until Thursday as that’s the way he knows.”

Elsewhere, the 31-year-old believes the recent allegations made against Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink in the Daily Telegraph have only made the group stronger together.

No further action was taken against Hasselbaink following an internal investigation, and Perch says the whole squad have been behind the manager.

“When you see people coming for our manager, we want to stick together and help each other,” said Perch.

“No one wants to see our manager taken down by anyone, we’re always going to back him.

“It’s definitely made as tighter as a group, most definitely.”