(Football news) Relegation-threatened Southampton have appointed Ruben Selles as their interim manager until the end of the season. The Spanish coach Selles, who is going to be the youngest manager in the Premier League at 39 years old was placed in temporary charge after Nathan Jones was sacked on Feb. 12. Jones was sacked by the club following a dismal run of nine defeats in 14 games which left Southampton sitting at the bottom of the standings with 18 points.

Selles in his first match led Southampton to a 1-0 victory over Chelsea last Saturday. Now his first task in his newly confirmed post will be a trip to relegation rivals Leeds United for potential, the winner gets out of the relegation zone match. Jones’s departure came after 95 days only when he was appointed as the permanent manager in November when Ralph Hasenhuttl got sacked, days before the World Cup break. Selles will be Southampton’s third head coach this season and he was also in interim charge when Hasenhuettl was sacked in November and he oversaw a League Cup penalty shootout win over Sheffield Wednesday.

Selles had joined Southampton in July 2022 as an assistant to Hasenhuettl. He has previous experience having managed Valencia’s under-18 team and has coaching experience in Greece, Denmark and Azerbaijan. Former Leeds manager Jesse Marsch was set to take over from Jones but the negotiations broke down over the length of the contract. Five wins from 23 games have left Southampton three points from safety but a win over relegation threatened Leeds, who sit one place higher on 19 points, will boost their survival chances.

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