Players can benefit from a woman's touch

And within those vast teams now appears to be a rise, and an acceptance, in the number of female physiotherapists in football.

Sir Alex was once quoted as saying "a female physio? My lads won't like that" but that was back in the 80s and it appears that players at clubs such as Liverpool and Chelsea 'do like that'.

And these days even at Manchester Untied, the head academy physiotherapist is also female.

When Chelsea's physio, Eva Carneiro first appeared on the pitch at Stamford Bridge a season or two ago, it sparked quite a lot of interest on social media sites and I even had some people asking me, "could a female do a good job?"

Perhaps you raised your own eyebrows at the first sight of the now familiar appearance of females running on the pitch at Premier League games?

'Able to do a good job' is not really the question, I think what people are really asking, and certainly thinking, is would a female have enough strength to put in enough force to give the players the deep massage and traditional hands-on techniques of a physio that football players need?

To answer that question I often have to re-set people's understanding of what someone like Eva's role at such a club would actually be. And the real problem lies in the idea that when most people think of a football physio, they think of a fat, often balding man running on to the pitch in a tight pair of shorts with a bucket and sponge in hand.

I should know, I was once a professional football physio, and although I'm not fat and bald - yet - it was how most of the people around me at the time would describe a typical physio.

But it's fair to say that the game and medical science has evolved quicker than most people are aware. And as I mentioned earlier, medical teams have swelled. And for clubs like Chelsea, Liverpool and the even over at Newcastle and Sunderland, that team now includes masseurs, sports scientist and nutritionists.

And when you put all of these experts in a room, it's important for everyone to know exactly what their job is. The real role of a head physio in such a team is now the diagnosis and the designing of a treatment plan.

To understand that better, if you ever need to visit a physio, for lets say, a common grassroots football injury such as a calf strain, and have to pay for your treatment, understand that you're paying very little for what they actually do.

You're paying for them to know when, where and for how long to do it. The actual hands-on treatment is the easy bit.

That's not to say that things like massage and stretching aren't vital to recovering from injury properly, they are, without question. It's just that at a club like Chelsea, Eva Carneiro will likely be asking somebody else to do it. It's the masseuse that will be responsible for the real deep, physical massage. So in essence the role of a physio at any football club is now one of the most important. Delegation is the key and a razor sharp understanding of injuries and what is needed to be done to get players back on the field is just as important as the physical treatment.

If you or your child is heading towards one of the academies of a professional football team, don't be surprised if there is a female physio looking after you. And it should come as no surprise as physios begin to infiltrate into the world of professional sport, it's a hugely female dominated profession.

When I trained to be a physiotherapist at university of the 80 people on the course, there were only ten males. And I think it's often the case that females can show a touch more empathy than their male counter parts.

This is one of the qualities needed by anyone dealing day to day with an injured person at any level. Academy matches, Sunday morning pub games, or even five-a-side games with your mates may not be as glamorous as a Premier League, but it is still extremely frustrating if you have to miss one with an injury.