Paul Merson claims NUFC fans have just missed a trick – Another comment he’ll live to regret?

According to Paul Merson, Newcastle fans are ‘missing a trick’ with Steve Bruce – believing the club’s new head coach is actually a “very good manager’.

For the record, my frustrations remain with Mike Ashley – not Steve Bruce – but I find it difficult to hear the Sky Sports pundit tell us we don’t quite realise what we have in Bruce when he’s replaced Rafa Benitez.

Here’s what Merson’s had to say about Bruce when speaking about his appointment over the weekend:

“I think he is a good manager, and I think they are missing the trick here, Newcastle fans, thinking they haven’t got a good manager.

“They have got a very good manager, a very good manager.”

I will give him a chance and also feel there’s been an overreaction to Sunday’s display, but he has an awful lot to prove if he’s to be called a ‘very good manager’ – never mind a competent Rafa Benitez replacement.

That said, the media aren’t portraying fans frustrations in the right way for me. Merson’s comments suggests fans are boycotting because of Bruce, yet it’s Mike Ashley that we are protesting against.

The lack of communication, his inability to keep Rafa, another failed takeover, leaving it late to replace key players in the transfer market and the general lack of ambition and PR stunts to pull the wool over fans eyes.

Bruce is a symptom of the deep-rooted issues at Newcastle United – Mike Ashley is the disease – but one thing our new head coach is not is a “very good manager”.

A good man-manager? Yes. A good bloke who I hope does well? Yes. But his record in the Premier League and recent CV in the game leaves a lot to be desired:

(Fancy writing for us? Get in touch at [email protected] & we’ll get back to you!)

About Olly Hawkins

As a Junior Magpie since birth and season ticket holder, I eat, sleep and breathe all things NUFC! Here at the blog, I aim to bring you news, views, match reports and transfer exclusives as and when I get them.

2 thoughts on “Paul Merson claims NUFC fans have just missed a trick – Another comment he’ll live to regret?

  1. I certainly. disagree with Mersons evaluation of Bruce, who I consider just another no-nothing ex player, one of the group of retreads like BSA, etc, who are given the job of avoiding relegation, in other words they come cheap and that’s what you get, a kna nowt failure, who never lasts long anywhere and play as if it was still in the last century.
    I was certainly pissed when
    Rafa. was forced out, being Ashley is both a tight-wad and control freak who knows less than nothing about football , uses the same approach as he uses with his rag trade business, buy cheap sell for a profit and uses the club as an advertising board for Sports Direct.
    While had he given any kind of control to Rafa. from the youth level to being in charge of transfers and the money to back him up, couldda been an acceptable situation, but that ain’t gonna happen with a control freak like Ashley .
    Hopefully his recent ventures in the big box store system will prove him to be a loser, I mean has he not heard of on line buying and the fact that big box stores are going out of business around the world.
    Soh ! just write this season off and enjoy the fact you may be one of many who
    end up boycotting the club and forcing him out once and for all.
    And accept the fact leapards don’t change their spots.

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  2. A tad inconsistent there methinks Olly.

    a manager’s success being based on results alone doesn’t take into consideration the players he gets to work with and the management above him.

    If you use results as the yardstick then looking at the last two seasons you would have to conclude that Rafa’s a pretty poor manager, and you’re not going to say that, are you?

    That’s why the value of simply using statistics to prove a point is always going to be questionable.

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