Premier League side Southampton have appointed their interim manager Ruben Selles as the full-time football coach till the end of the season, find out more about him and the reason that led to this decision.
Despite being just 39-years-old the Spanish manager has been preparing for this type of role for well over a decade.
Who is Ruben Selles new Southampton manager, his age, stats, football coach career, record
#SaintsFC can today confirm that Rubรฉn Sellรฉs has been appointed as Menโs First Team Manager until the end of the 2022/23 season. pic.twitter.com/kOz8IHoVUI
— Southampton FC (@SouthamptonFC) February 24, 2023
Official, confirmed. Southampton have now released a statement to announce that โRubรฉn Sellรฉs has been appointed as Menโs First Team Manager until the end of the 2022/23 seasonโ โช๏ธ๐ด๐ช๐ธ #SaintsFC
Spanish coach is gonna stay, as revealed earlier. pic.twitter.com/KiIvzNsQgW
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) February 24, 2023
The newly appointed manager just recently led the Saints to an important 1-0 victory over Chelsea in the Premier League.
Ruben Selles brief bio
Ruben Selles Salvador is a Spanish football coach who was born on 15 June 1983 in Valencia, Spain. He obtained a masterโs degree in sports and physiology from the University of Valencia before undertaking his UEFA Pro License. The UEFA Pro License is the highest coaching certificate and Ruben obtained it at the young age of 25. Ever since then, the Valencian native has hopped from one club and country to another.
Ruben Selles Coaching Career
Selles began his coaching career by moving abroad and joining Greek club Aris back in 2008. He made a brief return to Spain where he had spells with Valencia, CF Gandia and Villarreal. Selles eventually went on to coach at clubs in Russia, Azerbaijan, Norway, Denmark, and now England.
There have certainly been no Premier League managers who can list Neftchi Baku, Stromsgodset or Aarhus Gymnastikforening [AGF] in their previous experiences list. The fact that Selles has taken a very unconventional route to the top of the Europe makes him more impressive.
David Nielsen, who is a former Denmark U21 striker brought Selles to Stromsgodset. Nielsen has played for Wimbledon, Grimsby Town and Norwich City during his playing career. Stromsgodset is a Danish football club renowned for developing Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard.
Nielsen and Selles initially met in Valencia when both men were still in their formative years of their coaching careers. Nielsen also took Selles with him to AGF where the pair led the club to its highest league position in the Danish top-flight in 24 years.
Ruben Selles former clubs
Given below is the full list of all the former clubs that Ruben Selles has previously managed/coached:
- Aris (Greece)
- Valencia (Spain)
- Shinnik Yaroslavl (Russia)
- F. Gandia (Spain)
- Villarreal (Spain)
- Neftchi Baku (Azerbaijan)
- Stromsgodset (Norway)
- Qarabag (Azerbaijan)
- AGF (Denmark)
- FC Copenhagen (Denmark)
- Southampton (England)
Selles and Southampton so far
Following the sacking of Ralph Hasenhuettl back in November, Southampton appointed Ruben Selles as the Interim manager. And he has since then done an impressive job with the saints. Just last week, the 29-year-old guided the Saints to a shocking 1-0 victory against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. To make things more interesting, it was his first Premier League match in charge.
Prior to that he oversaw a Carabao Cup tie against Sheffield Wednesday. The win against Chelsea was even more special because it was Southamptonโs second league win in their last dozen games. Moreover, it was also their first clean sheet ever since back in October last year.
Southampton appoints Ruben Selles as full-time manager
Southampton have since then appointed Ruben Selles as their full-time manager until at least the end of the campaign. The decision comes just after a breakdown in talks with former Leedsโ manager Jesse Marsch.
Ruben Sellesโ first match in the dugout as the Saintsโ full-time manager will be during Saturdayโs match against Marschโs former club Leeds. The match is of great importance for Southampton who are currently floating around in the relegation zone.
Selles currently appears to be the perfect man prepared to take up the role as Southampton manager. In fact, if he does manage to keep Southampton afloat in the Premier League by the end of the season, he could very well stay even longer or get called up for and even bigger role in the future.