Reading caretaker boss Eamonn Dolan admits he is unsure if he will still be in charge of the team beyond Saturday's clash with Manchester United.
Great friend
Dolan has been in regular contact with McDermott since he was axed and revealed the former boss had a simple message for the squad ahead of the trip to Old Trafford.
"Brian is a great friend of mine. I've spoken to him each day," he said. "He's a great man. All he has said is: 'Good luck, get a result'. All he wants is for Reading to get a result."
Zingarevich spent Wednesday morning at the club's Hogwood Park training ground working with director of football Nick Hammond on the recruitment process.
Following this weekend's match the Russian owner will have the grace of an international week to further develop a managerial search he hopes will help avert an immediate return to the Championship.
Di Canio has expressed his desire to manage at the highest level since his acrimonious departure from Swindon last month while Adkins was unlucky to lose his job at Southampton earlier this season after leading them back to the top flight.
Chelsea's Champions League winning manager Roberto Di Matteo has also been mentioned as a possible target. The Italian has been out of work since his unexpected axing at Stamford Bridge in November.
Dolan's only first-team managerial experience was during a brief stint at Exeter, when they were outside the Football League, a decade ago.
The 45-year-old is set make his return against Premier League's runaway leaders and, while he admitted his admiration for Sir Alex Ferguson, said he would not be overawed.
"They're the best football club in the world and the best manager of all time," he said. "But I won't be thinking about that tomorrow.
"We need to get a result. I think Reading Football Club deserves to be in the Premier League."
Asked if he would be able to pick his players up following McDermott's exit, he added: "This group are a great group of players. I've trained them in the past few days.
"You are not going to get a better group. "They are just great people. They respected Brian. It has been a natural human emotion that they were disappointed after he left. We need to get a result."
