Who is Ruben Selles? How Can His Tactics Transform Sheffield United?

Sheffield United are making major changes to their managerial role as Chris Wilder is poised to be sacked after a disappointing 2025/26 season. The Blades have now confirmed the appointment of the ex-Hull City gaffer Ruben Selles to take over as their new manager and renew their push for Premier League promotion, with the 42-year-old signing a three-year contract with the club. That could lead to a transformation in terms of how Sheffield United play matches, and their fans could be in for a wild ride under this innovative gaffer.

Ruben Selles Tactics and Style of Play

Ruben Selles tactics can be quite beneficial for Sheffield United. The Spanish coach has already professed his love for an ‘organised chaos’ tactical approach, where his side is organized and compact in possession. Selles is quite obsessed with his side’s high-intensity form of counter-pressing to win back the ball as soon as his players lose it and also to get the maximum out of counter-attacks. Ruben Selles began his coaching career by pushing the 4-2-2-2 formation at Southampton, but he mostly used a 4-2-3-1 or 4-3-3 formation at Hull City.

If one has seen Ruben Selles’ Hull City side in the 2024/25 season, they would’ve seen a hard-working unit who showed a lot of energy with their pressing and knew how to maintain a compact defensive shape too. He encourages aggression in terms of having multiple players close down opposition individuals, has shown fluidity in changing formation, and his teams have been razor-sharp with the attacking transitions. In the last few years, Ruben Selles has come up with some clear tactical plans that have been apparent from his teams.

Ruben Selles Formation

Ruben Selles formation can be the key to success for Sheffield United. He mostly pushes for a 4-2-3-1 or 4-3-3 formation, which the Blades’ players should be accustomed to as they played it quite often under Chris Wilder. The system has two relatively defensive full-backs, two central defenders, a midfield pivot, a free-flowing no.10, two wingers, and a striker. That allows for a lot of fluidity to this formation, and Ruben Selles has also been encouraging players to switch positions to trick defenders in the attacking moves.

• Compact defensive shape: The Spanish gaffer likes his four-man defensive line to retain a sturdy shape in matches to make things difficult for opponents. He likes his defenders to keep a low-block defensive line to make things difficult for opposition players and drag more opponents into their half, creating chances for counterattacks.
• Direct, vertical style: In Selles’ teams, the players are encouraged to go with a direct, vertical passing style. The midfielders, in particular, are urged to quickly transition the ball from defence to attack to trouble defenders and help the forwards attack the open space.
• Free-flowing attacking midfielder: The Spaniard likes to give his no.10 a lot of freedom in terms of creating chances or moving into empty pockets of space. That’s why Hull’s attacking midfielder Joao Pedro was their top scorer last season with six goals in the EFL Championship. He likes his No. 10 breaking the lines to send his forward or wingers into space.
• Fluid forward: For Ruben Selles, it’s not just about his No. 9 being a box forward who demands service in the penalty box. He likes his forward to be able to drop deep to link up and disrupt the defenders’ positioning, and also be able to work hard enough to get into empty spaces in the box to score goals.

Counter-Pressing and Transitions: Ruben Selles is obsessed with the ‘Organised Chaos’ approach, where he likes his team to maintain a compact structure while harassing their opponents. He urges his players to be aggressive in counter-pressing and to win the ball back quickly after giving away possession.

This is mostly to help his players be rapid on the counter-attacks and find the opposition defenders by surprise with their rapid, incisive attacking moves. Once possession is won, he urges many players to flood the opposition’s final third and for his forwards to interchange roles to drag defenders out of positions, causing empty spaces to pop up.

Sturdy defensive structure: Even though Selles is a big fan of pressing and counter-attacks, he always prefers his teams to retain a strong defensive shape to close down opportunities for their opponents. That includes his back-four keeping a tight defensive line, and the defenders always sticking close to each other to stop gaps from forming. He likes his full-backs to stay deep when the opponents have possession to close down their scope of creating chances from wide areas.

Key Tactical Traits

Aggressive pressing: Selles likes his midfielders and forwards to be quite intense with their counter-pressing and close down the opposition defenders and midfielders’ opportunities to move the ball forward. This helps his side win back the ball in dangerous areas and can help them be a menacing force on the transitions.

Swift counter-attacks: The Spaniard is a big fan of counter-attacking football as he relies on the pace and incisiveness of his forwards to make things happen in the final third. He likes his midfielders to win back the ball in key areas and drive his side forward by sending the wingers or attackers into empty spaces and creating chances in the box.

Direct, vertical attacking: Selles emphasizes that his players to be direct with their style of play and also maintain a vertical style where they move the ball into the final third with quick passes and help the forwards find space in the final third.

Fluid positioning: The Spanish coach is quite lenient in allowing his players to move into different positions to confuse defenders. He gives his forwards, in particular, the freedom to change their roles and drift out of positions to open up gaps in the opposition backline for their teammates to attack into.

Also Read: Who is Gian Piero Gasperini? How Can His Tactics Transform AS Roma?

Ruben Selles Trophies and Achievements

Before opting to start working as a coach, Selles had a relatively short playing career in Spain. He played for local clubs like Parreta and Burjassot in the Valencia region, being born in Valencia.

The Spaniard has a master’s degree in Sports & Physiology from the University of Valencia and also acquired UEFA’s Pro License at the age of 25! Selles has, however, yet to win any trophies in his coaching career or guide his team to any major finals. His only achievements so far remain saving Reading and Hull City from getting relegated from the EFL Championship in the 2023/24 and 2024/25 campaigns, respectively.

Is Ruben Selles The Right Fit For Sheffield United?

Sheffield United are a club who are desperate to get promoted back into the Premier League again. Ruben Selles has managed in the Premier League in the past, but that was when he oversaw Southampton’s relegation from the division in the 2022/23 season. The 42-year-old is going to be inheriting a pretty talented, but somewhat unbalanced squad, which is going to be improved in the summer window. The Blades have experienced and quality forwards like Kieffer Moore and Gustavo Harmer, while Tyrese Campbell seems close to his peak form.

How Ruben Selles’ Tactics Could Work

Compact backline: Selles should benefit from having experienced and sturdy defenders like Jack Robinson and Anel Ahmedhodzic marshalling his backline, with the two being pretty good in moving the ball forward too. He’ll need to make a new right-back signing, while Harrison Burrows can be a good fit because of his defensive qualities, too.

Proactive midfield: Fortunately for the Spaniard, he should be inheriting a pretty industrious midfield line with players who are ready to work that extra bit to help their team succeed. The likes of Vinicius Souza, Sydie Peck, and Tom Davies are all hard-working players who will buy into his counter-pressing tactics and be able to win the ball back quickly to trigger counter-attacks.

Fluid forwards: Selles will be getting the chance to work with several promising forward options. Be it last season’s top scorer Tyrese Campbell, the experienced Kieffer Moore, or even ex-Liverpool man Rhian Brewster, he will have plenty of pace and adaptability with his clinical forwards.

Challenges Ahead

• Tactical changes: Selles is going to be bringing major tactical changes to his side’s playing style from what they were used to under Chris Wilder. This includes a major change to their pressing style and build-up play, and it’ll take time and patience for him to properly implement his side.
• Transfer market support: Sheffield United will need to bring back their new manager for them to work his magic with the squad. The Blades need to strengthen their backline and sign a no.10 as well as wingers to help add more quality to the squad.

External Factors

Ruben Selles is going to be appointed by Sheffield United with the expectation of Premier League promotion. He will be entrusted by the owners and fans to get them back to the top-flight, and that will be an overbearing pressure on him from the first day.

How Sheffield United Could Line Up Under Ruben Selles?

• Goalkeeper (Michael Cooper): The 25-year-old is an impressive shot-stopper and is well built to hold off against physical Championship sides, too. He is pretty good with moving the ball around, which is vital in Selles’ system.
• Centre-Backs: The experienced duo of Anel Ahmedhodzic and Jack Robison are tailor-made to retain their roles in the centre-back positions and add quality to the Blades’ defensive shape.
• Full-backs: Sheffield United will probably need to invest to buy more quality full-backs for the gaffer, but Harrison Burrows remains a favorite for that left-back role because of his proactive nature.
• Midfield pivot: Sydie Peck and Vinicius Souza can help add steel and energy to the midfield, being energetic enough to win the ball with intense pressure and helping them outwit opponents.
• Attacking Midfield: While Callum O’Hare can slot into the no.10 role with ease because of his creativity and eye for goal, Selles might need another signing and get a special no.10 who can dictate things in the opposition half.
• Forwards: Gusto Hamer has proven himself as a pretty strong option on the left wing, even though he can easily play in midfield. Rhian Brewster is another option for the right wing, while Tyrese Campbell remains the best available option up front.

Tactical Flexibility

Selles has been brave in often changing up his formation to try new things if his players fall into a rut of bad form. He normally prefers the 4-2-3-1 formation, but can easily revert to a 4-3-3 formation or a 4-2-2-2 formation depending on the availability of players and opponents in store. He often gives in-depth tactical information to players before matches and is proactive during games in bringing in changes to his system to outsmart opponents.

Areas of Improvement

• Sheffield United needs to bolster their defence, especially in signing a right-back and a centre-back.
• A special, creative No. 10 can make a huge difference in helping the Blades score more goals.
• Depth on the wings is very important as the Blades need to find quality options to bolster both wide areas.

Verdict

Ruben Selles might have quite a bit of experience managing in the EFL Championship, but he’s never managed a genuine title contender. It’ll be a major test of his tactical acumen and managerial ability to help the Blades get promoted to the Premier League in 2026 and potentially win the title. If he can make the right signings and be smart with his man-management, then the Spaniard could finally win the first big title of his managerial career and help uplift the Blades back into the top-flight.

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