AFC Bournemouth full-back Jack Stacey has hailed manager Scott Parker's attention to detail and believes this is why the former England international had such a successful career, speaking to the second-tier side's media team.

This detail has paid off for the Cherries, whose only loss of the season so far came in the Carabao Cup against Norwich City, remaining unbeaten in the Championship table thus far and climbing to the top of the table.

Winning ten and drawing four of their opening 14 games, Parker's men currently sit five points clear at the top and have their defensive record to thank for their current position.

Despite scoring nine fewer goals than second-placed Fulham, the south-coast outfit have conceded just eight goals in 14 Championship matches so far this term, keeping an impressive eight clean sheets in the process.

They have done more than enough to show their 6-0 defeat against Norwich City earlier in the campaign was nothing more than a minor blip - and they are now firm favourites to win the second-tier title after such a fast start.

Right-back Stacey, who saw Parker arrive at the Vitality Stadium in June after Jonathan Woodgate's failure to get the Cherries promoted via the play-offs last term, has nothing but praise for the way the 41-year-old's preparation for games.

Speaking ahead of the Cherries' Saturday evening away tie at Reading what has impressed him the most about his current boss, he said: "When we’re going into games, the gaffer and his staff have done so much homework on the opposition, how they play and the style of the play the gaffer wants from us, he knows exactly what he wants from every player in each position.

"I think the work that’s gone in on the preparation is evident and makes you realise how he made the most of his playing career."

The Verdict:

These comments follow on from Alan Shearer's admission that he isn't surprised to see Parker doing well on the south coast - and just shows how talented the 41-year-old already is as a coach despite only being in the early stages of what looks set to be a successful managerial career.

Although he has the stigma of two relegations on his CV at Fulham, the first of which wasn't entirely his fault, the fact he guided the Cottagers back to the Premier League during the 2019/20 season after a gruelling play-off campaign needs to be commended.

His achievements with the Cherries so far also need to be talked about.

Sheffield United, West Bromwich Albion and Fulham were arguably the promotion favourites going into this season. The Blades because they were able to appoint Slavisa Jokanovic, the Baggies because they managed to get promising manager Valerien Ismael on board and Fulham because of their summer business.

But Bournemouth have given themselves the perfect platform to build on after their unbeaten start - and the manager ultimately has to take a lot of credit for that after securing his summer move to the Vitality Stadium.