21 December 2018
By Hob Nob Anyone?
Reading appear set to confirm the appointment of Portuguese Jose Gomes as team manager, following the sacking of Paul Clement two weeks ago. After a number of names being linked with the role, including former club legend and now Bolton manager Phil Parkinson, the club appear to be going for a man virtually unknown in England.
A comparison of Clement and Gomes would appear to make Paul Clement a much better bet as Reading manager, but should Gomes be named manager then, despite the doubts, he would initially get the support of Reading fans. It's hard not to feel disappointed both by the departure of Clement, when there were promising signs, and the possible appointment of Gomes. Obviously time will tell but it feels like there may well be further tough times ahead for Reading fans.
Rumours have been circulating all week that Jose Gomes had been offered the role. He became the favourite with book makers early in the week after he confirmed that he had been spoken with Reading. The week has been spent negotiating a settlement with Gomes' current club Rio Ave, and Reading have increased their offer which is now believed to be one million Euros.
Gomes stated earlier in the week that he wished to stay with his current club, but he may have found the financial offer too good to turn down. His managerial record is mixed. Rio Ave are sixth in the table and started the season well but their form has dropped off and they have picked up just two points from their last five league games. As well as his poor recent league form he may have finished his work at Rio Ave with a 2-5 defeat against Sporting Lisbon in the Portuguese Cup. There is also the issue that he has jumped around so many different clubs during his career and has a massive list of managerial jobs despite being just 48 years old.
He has been assistant at Porto, Malaga and Panathinaikos, before spending just over a year in Hungary. He managed two sides in Saudi Arabia between 2014 and 2016 before a four month spell at Baniyas in the United Arab Emirates. While at Baniyas he managed just a single win and a draw from 13 matches in charge. He returned to his former club Al-Taawoun as a result but his record there was much worse than his previous spell in charge and he lasted just over a year before moving on again and back to Portugal to manager Rio Ave.
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