Being totally honest - Neil is the more sensible candidate but I’m much more intrigued by Selles. I feel like I know what I’d be getting with Neil. I think we’d be capable and I think he’d improve us - but I’m not entirely sure we’d be as fun to watch. Selles strikes me as someone who might play more interesting football but be a bit more of a risk. Id really like to not go down this season - but I’m not sure I’d be excited if Neil was here. It might feel like treading water. Selles feels like the start of another project - and one which would keep my interest in a season where it is flickering out.
No matter who is appointed it’s not an easy job to take on, The main aim is to take us out of the bottom three. We need to start taking points between now and the transfer window something we haven’t been doing much of late. Who ever it is ,he can only do so much with these players, he’s not a miracle worker. Let’s hope the players warm to him, trust his ways and he in return changes things for the better, different tactics, finding our weaknesses quickly, been able to do things differently to get the best out of the players. It all takes time, something we don’t have a lot of with the position we are in. Hopefully though this change will give everyone a lift because we was certainly struggling and nothing was changing with the previous manager.
When I looked at the shortlist, Jokanović Robins Neil are the safe, experienced managers that you felt would steady the ship and hopefully get us safe. selles didn’t have the experience but he had a bit of the unknown and excitement about him. if we’d have gone for any of the experienced 3 you’d have thought “yeah that’s a safe appointment” but deep down you’d have thought “what if” (Selles). now it looks like it’s Selles and that’s exciting and what might be but deep down I’m thinking maybe we should have gone safe
Hands down I'd rather we'd gone safe (if there isn't a last minute twist) but that's Acun for you. Hope Peter Sellers proves me wrong though
I don’t think Acun would ever go safe, if there’s an exciting option. Thankfully, this one feels a bit less left field than Tim but you just never know. It’s not just about how good a man manager, tactician etc. they are, there are so many variables that can make the difference between success and failure. Same with the players. We just have to hope that whoever it is, they’re able to get the best out of the current crop and Acun & his ‘brain team’ give him the best tools to do the job.
An Open Letter To Ruben Selles Dear Ruben, I hope I do not appear presumptuous if I write on behalf of every Reading fan, but I feel I must do so. The message from us is simple: please stay. This club is in a dire state as you know, but a “simple” takeover is all it needs to become more stable. I appreciate these are simple words for a very complex situation, however if you were to choose to stay and dedicate your personal future to this club, the esteem in which you are held would undoubtedly be among the highest any manager has ever been held in Reading, if not THE highest. We recognise the start you had was difficult, but the manner in which you have managed to guide this ship through troubled waters both on and off the pitch is beyond admiration. The improvement you have overseen in not only our young players - who you have managed superbly - but also the more senior professionals, is there for all to see. The rapport you hold with the fans of this club is like no other I have seen in 35 years following this humble football club. The respect held for the players, and understanding of the situation, by the fans, is in no small part down to you and your coaching team. The manager of a football club is the figurehead of any club, the standard-setter, the sun around which all playing staff orbit. Were it not for you, I am in no doubt that this football club would have collapsed long ago, but it is your work, your tireless effort, that has glued this club together. It takes a person with significant resolve to navigate such challenges as you have, and I only implore you - plead with you - to stay and ensure that if/when you do leave, the club is left in stable hands, not in the abyss with Dai Yongge. Navigate these challenges through to the takeover and then you will see what this club, its staff and its fans can offer you. Lastly, I just want to say that we, the fans, love you. The players clearly love you. The coaching staff clearly love you. I know the administrative staff love you. These may not be easy words to read for someone who appears humble, and shuns the limelight a bit, pushing the emphasis only on your players, but they are true. You are loved here. Please do not abandon that love for another club whose ownership appears to be among the most short-sighted and unstable in the Football League. However, if this is to be the end, I want to offer you the biggest of thank yous. Words cannot do justice to how, I think, every Reading fan feels about the job you have done under the most challenging of circumstances since you arrived at this club. Your coaching, tactics, political acumen and man-management skills have been demonstrated to the full, and it is no surprise you are courting interest from clubs higher up the pyramid. Nobody can blame you if you choose to leave, and you would leave with our best wishes. Hasta que nos volvamos a encontrar (¡con suerte en Wycombe!) Dave Harris https://thetilehurstend.sbnation.co...open-letter-to-ruben-selles-reading-fc-royals
That’s a great read and a great insight into the manager we ‘should’ be getting. The exact opposite of Tim Walter by the sound of things. I for one am excited by this appointment above all others. I understood the clamour for someone who knew the division any many of the options were solid options - I just think this has the potential to be something great.
People also refer to his spell at Southampton in the Premier League as unsuccessful but they were already doomed when he took over in February 2023. He did win his first game 0-1 away at Chelsea. He also got a 3-3 home draw v Tottenham and even more impressive 3-3 away at Arsenal and finished with a 4-4 away at Liverpool. Perhaps we will see more goals!
