How Ruben Selles' training helped unfavoured Reading defender in quest for badges
Reading defender Harlee Dean has opened up on his time on the side lines under Ruben Selles, but how the Spaniard's unique coaching methods kept him from 'driving into a wall.'
The 33-year-old was signed last summer but failed to make a league start between October 2024 and January 1 2025, unfancied under new Hull City chief Selles.
Now a regular fixture again under Noel Hunt, the former Birmingham City and Brentford captain is back enjoying his football.
With half an eye on what comes next, Dean is midway through his UEFA A coaching license and hopes to move onto his Pro license in the future, seeing himself as a Head Coach in years to come.
Speaking to the media at Bearwood last week, Dean was quizzed on his ambitions when the time comes to hang up his boots.
"I’m on my A license this year, from the summer, so I’ll hopefully have that completed by the end of the season. Then it’s onto the pro. I do want to manage, and I do want to coach. I don’t want to necessarily coach too much, I see myself more as a head coach, but it’s a long way down the line. Once you finish playing, you have to do your apprenticeship and get the hours in and do it that way."
Training hard every day for no match on a Saturday would leave most footballers disinterested and frustrated, especially ones with over 400 career appearances under his belt, however Dean insisted that despite seeing little playing time under Selles, it was not all bad.
"That’s why I got through last year without driving into a wall- I learned a lot off of Ruben," Dean admitted. "I’ve played for a long time, and I’d never seen his style of playing or his training set-up.
"I always go to training- obviously I want to do well-, but I look at it from a set-up point of view. What are we getting out of it? How does it work? What are the numbers? What is the end product? I look at it differently now but I’m still fully in player-mode."
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