‘Not a secret’: Ruben Selles admits he wants Southampton job

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Ruben Selles has made it abundantly clear that he wants to become Southampton manager after a 1-0 win over Chelsea on Saturday.

Few were backing the Saints for a win at Stamford Bridge, even with Chelsea in pretty dire form under Graham Potter.

Yet Selles masterminded a 1-0 win as James Ward-Prowse did what he does best with a sumptuous free kick to win it.

Southampton had to deal with plenty of Chelsea pressure and were forced to make a host of last-ditch blocks and challenges.

Selles claimed all three points though, possibly giving Southampton a real injection of life as they attempt to stay in the Premier League.

Naturally, the question will now turn to whether Selles can land the job permanently – and the Spaniard has made his feelings pretty clear.

Ruben Selles wants Southampton job

Selles spoke to BBC Sport after the final whistle against Chelsea and put forward his case for the job on a permanent basis.

Selles admitted that he wants the job and it’s not exactly a secret either, but he’s just focusing on preparing the Southampton team.

“I would like the job permanently. It is not a secret. I don’t think about that, I prepare the team,” said Selles.

It looked like Southampton would be appointing a new manager less than a week ago.

Jesse Marsch seemed nailed-on to land the job having left Leeds United earlier this month.

The talks broke down and Selles was kept in caretaker charge for the trip to Chelsea.

In fact, The Telegraph claimed that Southampton did actually give real consideration to appointing Selles before advancing a move for Marsch.

Selles is now surely the favourite for the Southampton job, even if it’s only until the end of the season.

The 39-year-old is in his first senior managerial job here, so maybe the Saints will try to add an experienced coach to help him.

A former assistant manager in Russia, Greece, Azerbaijan and Denmark, Selles could have a bright future in management and he certainly made a great start with Saturday’s shock win.