Steve Clarke "happy" to remain in charge of Reading after holding Fulham talks

By Daniel Lewis, Senior Reporter | 20 November 2015

Reading manager Steve Clarke insists that he is more than happy to remain at the Madejski Stadium, having seen talks with Fulham break down over the past 24 hours.

Steve Clarke has claimed that he was never close to joining Fulham and hopes to now rebuild bridges with Reading supporters after agreeing to remain in charge.

The 52-year-old held discussions with Fulham officials on Thursday morning and was widely expected to succeed Kit Symons at Craven Cottage.

Talks soon broke down, however, with Clarke opting against jumping ship to the Royals' Championship rivals and instead remaining in place at the Reading helm.

After a topsy-turvy couple of days, the ex-Chelsea coach spoke to reporters this morning in an attempt to explain the reasons behind his decision to stay put in Berkshire.

"I'm here for the rest of my contract I hope. It's been a strange week but I know I made the right decision," he said. "I understand the angst and anger among supporters, but when someone is prepared to pay money to speak to me, it's something as a professional I have to look at. I went to Fulham and decided what I had here was better for me.

"It wasn't about money - it was about ambition and professionalism. I didn't want to think what if. What I have here is more mind blowing. I'm happy with what I have here. This was the best option by a mile - to stay here. All I wanted was the chance to speak to another club and weigh up what is best for me."

After a run of one defeat in 11 outings, Reading have since fallen off the pace in the hunt for promotion and now find themselves winless in five.

"I believe I still have support 100% and now I want to get back to success on the pitch," he added. "The fact I'm still here tells you what I think of the players. We have gone off the boil in recent weeks, but we're looking to get back to winning ways. It won't have a detrimental effect.

"The players want me here and we have a good relationship. In my mind and theirs we're focused on getting back to winning ways. The fans reaction - you want to be liked. The supporters are the most loyal people in football. I've explained why I went to talk to Fulham. I've had good support from the fans, since I've made the decision to stay they are happy.

"Hopefully among the anger they can realise I've made a decision to stay and get to the Premier League. That's what everyone wants. It wasn't close. I had a chat but came back the next day. In my mind I was always closer to Reading."

Reading return to Championship action on Saturday afternoon when they face strugglers Bolton Wanderers at the Madejski Stadium.