He has a Premier League background as a player but George Elokobi had no intention of jumping the queue in his coaching career.

Elokobi, named Maidstone boss last Friday, has been quietly working away behind the scenes to prepare for his opportunity.

The former Wolves defender has been taking his coaching badges and working with United’s academy to put himself in a position to get into management.

It’s often a criticism aimed at ex-pros who jump straight into Football League jobs without learning their trade further down the pyramid.

Elokobi had no intention of going down that route when he set out on the road to coaching.

“We all start from somewhere,” he said.

“I always said I wanted to start my career organically and go about it right.

“I didn’t want to cut any corners. I wanted to make sure I’m learning and developing myself as a coach, as a manager, which I’ve done since I joined this football club.

“I’ve been coaching, spending countless hours outdoors making sure I’m learning, but I’ve also engaged myself in coaching courses to better myself.

“As a manager it’s all about being successful but going about it the right way and making sure I work as hard as I can every single day to be the best version of myself.

“I want to give myself a chance to be able to develop but also make sure I deliver for our football club.

“That means putting a structure and a culture in place that if I were to leave here tomorrow I can look back and go, ‘Yes, there is a legacy left behind’, just as there was when I played for this football club as captain.”

Elokobi played under some big-name managers in his career, a list topped by Mick McCarthy and Kenny Jackett at Wolves.

Add in the likes of Gary Waddock, Phil Parkinson and Lee Johnson and the new Stones boss has plenty of experiences to draw on.

“You always take traits from managers you played under and try to embed them in yourself as an individual,” said Elokobi.

“I’ve got my own management skills in terms of how I do things but also, yes, you take good attributes from all these great managers as you try to carve your own niche.

“These are all managers I still speak to very much today and they all welcomed me to the other side, which is fantastic.

• Elokobi planning for next season

“They know the passion I had as a player and they know I’m not going to be short of that as a manager.

“That’s exactly how I am and why I’m a manager that encourages and wants his players to go out there and express themselves within the team structure and try to win football matches the right way and be respectful of my opponents.

“It’s important we try to play a fair game.

“If we win we’re excited, if we draw we’re excited, if we lose we’re disappointed but we respect the result and we get back to the training ground to try and make it right for the next game.”