"He will want to stay" - Claim made on Ruben Selles' Reading FC future amid Cardiff City talk | OneFootball

FLW's Reading fan pundit has given his view on manager Ruben Selles' future at the club amid reports linking him with Cardiff City.

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

Reading manager Ruben Selles has been linked with the vacant managerial position at Cardiff City.

Cardiff are on the hunt for a new manager after the sacking of Erol Bulut, who left the club last month after his side picked up just one point from their opening six league games of the season.

Omer Riza is currently in caretaker charge of the Bluebirds, and he has overseen an upturn in fortunes in recent weeks, but it seems the club are weighing up an external appointment, with Wales Online reporting that Selles is one name that has been discussed.

Selles was appointed as Reading manager last summer, and despite suffering a six-point deduction last season, he comfortably led the Royals to safety in League One as they finished in 17th place.

However, the Royals' off-field issues have continued into the new campaign, and while the Spaniard is still managing to deliver results on the pitch, he recently admitted that the ongoing ownership problems at the Select Car Leasing Stadium were "exhausting".

Selles is not the only candidate for the Cardiff job, and former Sunderland and Birmingham City manager Tony Mowbray has been sounded out about the possibility of taking over, while Steven Schumacher, Alex Neil and Charlton Athletic boss Nathan Jones are also under consideration.

When asked if he believes Selles will be tempted to make the move to Cardiff if offered the job, FLW's Reading fan pundit Johnny Hunt said that he expects the 41-year-old to remain loyal to the club.

"It would be no surprise that any Championship club would be interested in Ruben Selles," Johnny said.

"The job he's done under the circumstances at Reading has been unreal.

"You could argue that the league position hasn't been the highest, but in the circumstances of what has gone on at the club, to motivate the players to put on the performances they have, especially at home, and to keep the team together has been unreal.

"I wouldn't blame him for going at any stage, he's had opportunities to leave in the last 18 months because of the way things have been run at the club, but I think he's very loyal to the team and to the fans and I think he gets that loyalty back.

"He sees the work in progress at the club and he's kind of become a figurehead, not by choice, but because all the senior people in the background have disappointment.

"It's stressful for him, he's under a lot of pressure having to deal with all of this and promises of an owner coming in and then that going, but I think he will want to stay with us.

"He has a special bond with the fans and the players, we know the results aren't always going to be great at the minute, but he's gone this far in the journey that he might want to continue long-haul and rebuild the club once the right people are in place.

"He's a decent guy and a good coach and we believe in him as fans."

Johnny is right that Selles has shown remarkable loyalty to Reading during his time at the club, and it is fair to say many other managers would have walked away in similar circumstances.

It seemed that Selles was understandably considering his future after the recent collapse of Rob Couhig's takeover, but the announcement on Monday that a new potential buyer is in exclusivity talks with owner Dai Yongge could convince him to stay at the club.

Should another takeover attempt fall through, Selles may then be tempted to depart, but as Johnny says, having stuck with the Royals throughout the past year, he may be keen to lead the club back to the Championship under new ownership.

Selles has done an excellent job at Reading, and it is easy to see why he is starting to emerge on the radar of other clubs, but after the off-field turmoil he has experienced at the Select Car Leasing Stadium, he may have reservations about taking over at Cardiff given the questionable way the Bluebirds have been run in recent years.