Hull City boss Ruben Selles has not ruled out Ryan Giles leaving the club this month, hinting that he's among the players who are allowed to leave the club as he seeks to sign a new left-back this month.

Middlesbrough are understood to once again be in talks with Hull about the left-back, though much like the summer when talks fell through, they won't overpay with left-back not a priority. Despite that, Giles showed his quality while on loan at the Riverside two seasons ago and still has many admirers at Boro as a result.

Giles has had two tough seasons since his loan on Teesside came to an end, with his Luton Town move not working out, before a Hull switch also failed to help him recapture his Riverside highs. Hull are believed to need to offload players in order to allow new boss Selles to put his own stamp on the squad, with Giles one such player Selles will let leave. That's prompted Boro's rekindled interest, with Giles's representatives making Boro aware again of his availability.

READ MORE: Tommy Conway injury latest amid Latte Lath transfer uncertainty while Middlesbrough duo return

READ MORE: Tom Cannon and potential Latte Lath transfer replacements if he leaves Middlesbrough

Asked about the situation, Selles told BBC Radio Humberside: “We obviously keep an open conversation with Ryan. We have been working together now for six or seven weeks and there are things that we can improve. We have constant communication with him and he has played for us, especially in the very, very beginning.

"He’s played a little bit less recently since the Preston substitution when he felt something in his hamstring. It’s a situation we need to monitor very closely. We are talking with him and we have already established that we need to sign a left-back this month. Let’s therefore see what the decision is, not only for us, but also him."

Asked if he’d received anything official from Boro or elsewhere, Selles continued: “I haven’t. Jared [Dublin, head of recruitment] is managing those situations. Until it is in the final stages they don’t ask me if the move is on or not. I haven’t received anything yet.

"I don’t want to be involved in the early stages of anything because that’s taking my focus away from what is important for me [coaching the team]. If it is just speculation or a phone call about a player, I don’t need to know. The club know my list of players who can have talks with other clubs, and beyond that, it’s only the final thing for the club to then come to me. I think this is the best way to do it.”

Giles joined Hull City in last year's January transfer window in a loan move from Luton that included a £4m obligation for the Tigers to purchase him in the summer. Having flopped at the MKM, however, Hull were less enthusiastic about the permanent move, and it's why in the summer Boro felt there was a chance they could get him back.

But Boro were unwilling to meet Hull's initial demands and when the Tigers then lost a couple of other important players and struggled in the market to finalise replacements, they ultimately changed their stance on Giles and decided they could not sell. With the 24-year-old still struggling to make an impact though, they are once again open to a sale.

Asked how Giles was handling his situation and the speculation around him, Selles concluded: “I think when - and this is not just Ryan it is the whole club - you’re not having the best season there is always speculation and talk about your abilities. He is mature enough, a former Premier League player, and is handling it as good as he can.”