Reading confirmed shortly after their defeat to Middlesbrough on Saturday that Jose Gomes had been appointed as their new manager.
The 48-year-old succeeded Paul Clement at the Madejski Stadium after the Royals agreed a compensation package with top-flight Portuguese outfit Rio Ave.
He will inherit a side in a big relegation battle, with only goal difference keeping the Berkshire side outside the bottom three.
Therefore, Gomes has been thrown in at the deep end with his first job in English football and EFL on Quest pundit Nigel Reo-Coker exclusively told FLW that this is a brave move from Reading: “I think it’s a big risk but it’s up to the powers that be that are running the club.
“If they want to pursue that foreign avenue and if they know what it means then they’re going to have to get a few foreign players in, ready to make these changes.
“In my personal opinion you’re best going with a British manager, especially around this Christmas period. You need a manager who understands how busy this is and how many games are coming.
“It’s difficult to come into this situation at this period, especially at a club like Reading who are not doing so well.”
Despite that, Reo-Coker did acknowledge that several Portuguese managers have had a big impact on English football over the years, figures Gomes will hope to emulate:
“It’s a gamble but at the same time, looking from the other side, you’ve got a lot of Portuguese managers who have come to England and been successful, from Jose Mourinho to Nuno Espirito Santo at Wolves, and Marco Silva.
“So it can be done you just hope that the club knows exactly what this manager is about on a personal level and that he can handle this task.”
Gomes will take charge of his first game on Boxing Day, when the Royals travel to Millwall - the side they are above on goal difference.
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