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| Ruben Selles (Getty Images) |
The Premier League team announced on Friday that interim manager Ruben Selles has been named Southampton's manager for the end of the season.
The 39-year-old Valencian coach was appointed on an interim basis after Nathan Jones was fired on February 12 following a poor stretch of nine losses in 14 games that left Southampton in last place in the standings with 18 points. Avoiding the team's relegation to the Championship is the arduous task facing the Valencian coach.
Southampton defeated Chelsea 1-0 on Saturday under Selles' direction. His first task in his newly confirmed position will be the trip to relegation rivals Leeds United this coming Saturday. After being chosen in November to succeed Ralph Hasenhuettl, Jones left his position 95 days later.
Following the firing of Hasenhuettl in November, Selles, Southampton's third manager this season, also acted as interim manager and was in charge of the team's League Cup triumph over Sheffield on Wednesday. In July 2022, Selles started working for Southampton as Hasenhuettl's assistant. He has experience coaching in Greece, Denmark, and Azerbaijan. He previously served as the under-18 team manager for Valencia.
With fifteen games left before the end of the English league season, Selles, who is taking over for Welshman Nathan Jones in his first experience as head coach in the elite, is now last but is only three points out of a playoff spot. The bottom team's triumph over Chelsea as a visitor was the result of the Spanish coach, who has earned the support of the players because of his ability to lead them to the season's finish. Being three points out of the spots that would keep the squad in the Premier League for another season makes the challenge difficult.
There are currently six Spanish coaches who predominate the Premier bench. Artera (Arsenal), Guardiola (City), Emery (Aston Villa), Lopetegui (Wolverhampton), newcomer Javi Gracia (Leeds), and now Sellés has been officially announced.
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