Thursday 29 December 2016 13:11, UK
Jaap Stam should stay at Reading and ignore interest from Swansea if reports from Holland linking him with the Liberty Stadium hot-seat are true, former Dutch team-mate Mario Melchiot says.
Sky sources understand Chris Coleman and Gary Rowett are the leading contenders to replace Bob Bradley, who was sacked on Tuesday, after winning just two of his 11 matches in charge, leaving Swansea level on points with bottom-of-the-league Hull.
Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf claim former Manchester United and AC Milan centre-back Stam, who was appointed Reading boss in June last year, is also a viable contender for the vacant Swansea manager's position.
Melchiot admits he is a huge fan of Stam but says his compatriot is currently best-placed to succeed at Reading, who have won eight of their last 10 matches and sit third in the Sky Bet Championship.
"Jaap Stam is a great candidate [for Swansea]. He is a good manager with a good philosophy and I'm really impressed with the job he is doing at Reading," Melchiot told Sky Sports.
"But for Jaap it is also really important what he has above him. He works closely with someone I know really well, Brian Tevreden the sporting director, who is from the same neighbourhood as me and joined the club from Ajax.
"They both deserve so much credit for the team they have built up and they have manoeuvred the situation around player recruitment really well with limited finances.
"They work so well together and I think that's why Reading have a great set-up, even though if Jaap was to move to a Premier League team, I think he could do well.
"But it's easier doing a job you really want - and I know Jaap really wanted the Reading job - rather than taking a job because you want to be a manager. Happiness at work in any form creates a different type of momentum and energy for yourself and the people around you.
"I hope he keeps on doing well because I like him as a person and it was an honour to play alongside a player like him."
Stam will sit down with the Reading's owners in the coming days to discuss his January transfer plans and to find out more about a proposed takeover of the club by Chinese investors.
"It looks like there have been some [takeover] talks but I'm not sure if anything has been decided yet," Melchiot added.
"It's a tricky situation when new owners come in because you're not sure how their philosophy differs from the previous owners. You're never quite sure of what their goal is or if they are committed to keeping the team in the same track and pushing them forward.
"The goal has to be to get Reading back to the Premier League and keeping them there. Often teams get there and it's just for one season, you don't want that. You want a great set-up that can keep you there to maintain that push to stay in the Premier League for a long time."
Former Reading boss Steve Coppell hopes any potential deal is concluded as swiftly as possible to minimise distraction on and off the pitch.
"Jaap seems to be doing really well but one thing that does concern me is that I keep reading about a change of ownership," he said.
"You look at that and you think that it shouldn't affect the players but unbelievably it does. Whenever there are ownership changes - even when it results in very minimal change to personnel and the way the team is run - it somehow always affects performances.
"I just hope that if there is a change of ownership it is done as quickly and as painlessly as possible to allow Reading to concentrate on the rest of the season."
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