Steve Clarke does not have to sell himself.

A coach with glowing recommendations from Jose Mourinho, Ruud Gullit, Gianfranco Zola and Kenny Dalglish is able to accept a modest role on the sidelines. Yet the Scot has never been wholly content with that position on the shoulder of authority. His move into management, having been appointed as Roy Hodgson's successor at West Bromwich Albion, has taken longer than he might have hoped, but Clarke has always been driven by the need to prove that he can be his own man.

There is a doggedness to a career that continues at the forefront of contemporary coaching after beginning in the carefree days at Chelsea, when training alongside the likes of Vinnie Jones, Andy Townsend, Tony Cascarino and Kerry Dixon involved bacon rolls, a five-a-side game and a visit from the local bookie. Clarke is the epitome of the modern-day football scholar: studious, meticulous, intense, and articulate, but plenty of smart thinkers still fail.

Clarke has thrived because of his ability to adapt to his circumstances. That is a trait that will help his transition into management, but there is also the sense that West Brom is the perfect club for Clarke to begin his new career with. The structure is stable, with a sporting director who ensures that the team is built steadily and the finances remain on an even keel. Hodgson immediately revived his reputation at The Hawthorns, while Roberto di Matteo established himself as a top-flight manager at the club.

Clarke has long been considered an over-qualified apprentice. Mourinho quickly promoted him from his role as youth coach at Stamford Bridge, and before long was proclaiming his virtues. "This is what I think about Steve Clarke," Mourinho said while he was Chelsea manager. "If, at this moment, he had the chance to manage a club, even a big club like Chelsea, he would be ready for that. He is that good."

Dalglish is less verbose, but it was telling that his first act upon becoming caretaker manager of Liverpool was to appoint Clarke as his assistant. It was similarly revealing that the Anfield club rejected Clarke's resignation letter after Dalglish was sacked. Clarke ended up leaving last week anyway, but that was to take the West Brom job. Brendan Rogers, the new Liverpool manager, worked at Stamford Bridge at the same time as Clarke, and the two men have been deeply influenced by their proximity to Mourinho.

Clarke's abilities as a coach are well-established. He brought order and tactical nuance to Liverpool, and was the more experienced figure in the management team with Zola at West Ham. That job ended sourly, but they can point to being undermined by the board and a general turmoil as a mitigating factor.

"Steve Clarke is fantastic," said Raul Meireles, who worked under him at Anfield. "The way the training is, I only want to say good things. As a person, I really like him. I never worked with Jose but I worked with Andre Villas-Boas one month in Porto and it's the same style. There's more variety, you work more with the ball, it's enjoyable. Everybody knows it: we are better. This is the way – if you train good, you play good."

There are other aspects to management, though, and Clarke remains a novice when it comes to dealing with the media, or the direct demands of the board, and even of the ultimate authority in the dressing room. He was never a pliant assistant, and made a point of challenging those he worked for in the privacy of the manager's office, but there is always a different edge to decisions in being the final authority.

Clarke is smart enough, and adaptable enough, to quickly fit into the awkward corners of his new role. He might have signed for Celtic when he left St Mirren, and told his wife he would complete that deal, only to return later and reveal that he had signed, instead, for Chelsea. There was instinct at work, but also a shrewd understanding that his career would be better served in London. Clarke also played his first game for the club only days later, despite being told he could take longer to move down.

He will take the meticulous approach of Mourinho, the idealism of Zola and the pragmatism of Dalglish. Mostly, though, Clarke will be his own man: thorough and astute. The time has long been right for him to move into management. Hibernian and Kilmarnock once courted him, but neither suited his purposes. A job in the Barclays Premier League is ideal, because Clarke has already served at the highest level.