'New owners normally want a new manager' - Steve Bruce admits sack could be looming after Newcastle takeover

ByEurosport

Published 07/10/2021 at 19:47 GMT

"New owners normally want a new manager," Steve Bruce said following the takeover of Newcastle "I’ve been around long enough to understand that. That decision is not up to me. I accept that and I will accept what comes my way. I have to wait to have those conversations with people when the time is right."

Steve Bruce has admitted the sack could be looming for him in light of the takeover of Newcastle United.

Bruce has been in charge of the Magpies since 2019, and owner Mike Ashley stood by the local man despite not having the support of the fans and mediocrity on the field.

Ashley is now out of the picture following the takeover of the Magpies by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund.

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The Saudi takeover has caused controversy in light of the allegations of human rights abuses, but Magpies fans were roundly celebrating on Thursday evening.

Amanda Staveley has been the public face of the takeover, and she referenced changes at the club when addressing the media on Thursday.

Bruce is aware he could be on borrowed time, and may be left marooned on 999 games as a manager should he be axed before the Magpies faces Tottenham on October 17.

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“I want to continue, I’d like the chance to show the new owners what I can do, but you have to be realistic and they may well want a new manager to launch things for them," Bruce told the Telegraph. "New owners normally want a new manager. I’ve been around long enough to understand that.

That decision is not up to me. I accept that and I will accept what comes my way. I have to wait to have those conversations with people when the time is right.

“If I don’t make it to a 1,000 games against Spurs, you might say that could only happen to me, but I don’t think it would be cruel. It’s just football.”

Staveley and her partners have been pursuing a deal for Newcastle for a number of years, with a host of false dawns. The talk resurfaced on Wednesday, and Bruce was shocked by the speed of the deal.

“I didn’t know anything about this until news of it broke yesterday," he said. “I took training on Thursday morning. It was a very strange atmosphere, it was very quiet, but we are all waiting now to see what happens. I’ll wait like everybody else.”

Should he depart, Bruce will be backing the club he supported as a child.

“I really hope this is the start of an exciting new era," the 60-year-old said. "It certainly sounds exciting when you read about how much money Saudi Arabians have.

"The takeover is a chance for this club to be what every supporter has wanted it to be for so long. If this is the real deal, I’ll be happy for the fans because, at the end of the day, that is what I am.

“Long before I played football, long before I became a manager, I was a Newcastle United fan. I’d love to see this club win something, to play in Europe and from everything I’ve heard about these new owners, that is what they want too and they have the money to make it happen.”

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