Hull City confirm new coach as Ruben Selles promises to 'fight for every inch together'
The 41-year-old has joined on a two-and-a-half-year contract with a club option of a further year, after a compensation fee was agreed with League One Reading. His previous role in charge of a team was as caretaker manager of a Southampton side doomed to relegation in 2022-23.
Before that he had a string of different coaching roles in Greece, Spain, Russia, Azerbaijan, Norway and Denmark having taken up coaching aged 16. It led him to Southampton, initially as Ralph Hasenhuttl's assistant.
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Hide AdCoaches James Oliver-Pearce and Tobias Loveland have followed him from Berkshire to East Yorkshire. The trio will officially start work on Monday.


Oliver-Pearce was a coach Selles inherited at Reading having spent 10 years at Wimbledon, Loveland an analyst at Southampton who followed Selles to the Royals.
The Spaniard replaces Tim Walter, sacked along with his assistants Julian Huebner and Filip Tapalovic after an unconvincing spell as manager. Including seven pre-season games, Walter oversaw 25 matches and won just three, all in the space of an 11-game period.
The entertainment promised never materialised.
Hull chairman/owner Acun Ilicali, who sacked Liam Rosenior at the end of last season for narrowly missing out on the Championship play-offs with a brand of football he found dull.
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Hide AdUnsurprisingly, what Selles can offer in that regard featured prominently in Ilicali’s comments.
“Ruben’s ambition aligns with ours,” he said. “His passion and enthusiasm shone through in our meetings and we share similar ideas of how we want football to be played.
“There was considerable interest in the role, but Rubén stood out for his football philosophy, ability to develop players, attention to detail and extensive coaching experience.
“I would like to thank Reading for their cooperation and professionalism throughout the process.
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Hide Ad“I believe we have the right man to lead our talented squad forward and give our passionate supporters a team they will enjoy watching.
“My dream for this club is entertaining football and positive results. We are really excited to have Ruben with us and I know our amazing fans will welcome him into our Hull City family.”
On paper, Selles' achievements in management are modest and he has no Championship experience, but the context of Reading's off-field troubles put having the Royals in the League One play-offs at this stage of the season in a more favourable light.
He also claims to be well-versed in the club he is joining.
"When the possibility to come here became real, my eyes were on Hull City,” he said.
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Hide Ad“I know the team, the club, the history and I’m looking forward to starting my journey with the team.
“I saw a lot of similarities with where we are as technical staff and what we want to do for the present and the future, and that’s why I decided to come.
“From now, we go all in, all together, every single time, 100 oer cent. There is no tomorrow; every day is important, every action is important. We’re going to fight for every inch together.”
Walter's approach has left Hull in the relegation zone after 18 matches. Caretaker Andy Dawson, who oversaw last week's defeat at Middlesbrough, is expected to take the team for the final time at home to Blackburn Rovers on Saturday.
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