Reading legend Brian McDermott praised Ruben Selles for the job he has done at the club and hopes the club 'get a break' as off-field issues continue to dominate the headlines.

McDermott, who has recently left Scottish Premiership side Hibernian, spent over 15 years with the Royals over two spells, best known for managing the club to the Championship title and into the Premier League in 2012.

Still a keen supporter of his former employers, McDermott has been feeling the fear and nerves as much as the supporters in Berkshire.

Speaking exclusively to the Reading Chronicle, McDermott gave his verdict on the current crisis at Reading and the popular Spanish boss.

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"It’s so frustrating for everyone, I would imagine," the former Arsenal midfielder said. "I met the manager recently when the Under-21s played Sunderland. I introduced myself and said I managed the club, but he said ‘Yeah, I know who you are.’ He is a charming guy and has done a brilliant job this year. I said to him that I’d never been to the new training ground, and he’s insisted I go so maybe this year I will go and see him at the training ground. He’s a really nice guy, I really liked him.

"It's not helpful [waiting for ownership news.] As long as you’ve got a path of what you can do in front of you, you can go out and do it- at the moment they don’t. I speak to Brian Carey quite a lot, a really good man and really good Head of Recruitment, and he’ll know what targets are out there, but you’ll miss targets because of the situation. Players don’t want to go to a club where, on the face of it, the club don’t know what the ownership situation is."

McDermott can sympathise with Selles because he was at the helm during another protracted takeover over a decade ago.

Sir John Madejski first sold the club to Russian billionaire Anton Zingarevich in 2012, with talks taking place through most of the club's title-winning 2011/12 campaign.

Thought to be the club's ticket to top-flight security, Zingarevich dumped the debt-riddled club back on Madejski within two years.

"I can understand it- it’s frustrating," he commented when quizzed on the emotions of a manager. "I had it when I was at Reading where we had the ownership change from Sir John to Anton Zingarevich. I can remember saying to my wife that the only way I kept my job was winning every game, and we did that. There was a lot of uncertainty going on behind the scenes that nobody really knew about- you try and keep it away from staff.

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"I feel for him [Ruben]. He’s done a great job and kept the team in the league comfortably, he just needs a break. The club needs a break and a situation where it can get the situation sorted."

With the players returning for pre-season training on Wednesday, attention must turn to building another squad capable of being competitive in League One.