Bruce sends new message to fans calling for his head & claims it’s been “personal” since day one

Steve Bruce has given a brutally honest press conference following 48 hours of major fan unrest and mass calls for him to be sacked, saying he takes full responsibility for our embarrassing 1-0 defeat to Sheffield United.

He accepts he got the team selection wrong, but does claim that some of the dislike towards him on Tyneside has been “personal” ever since he took the job.

Here is what he’s had to say, starting with his honest assessment of Monday night’s catastrophe at Bramall Lane:

“In hindsight, I picked the wrong team on Tuesday, so I have to come in front of you and accept that.

“I have to be responsible for that and that’s what I’ll do.

“I understand and accept the criticism. “if I was a fan I would feel the same.

“We have thrown in a hand grenade too many times. We were absolutely hopeless on Tuesday but the gloves are off now.

“Have I lost the dressing room? I’m the wrong person to ask of that, but I see nothing wrong with them against Arsenal, Liverpool and Leicester.

“But the hand grenade has been thrown in when we’re expected to win has happened too many times on my watch.”

Bruce also responded to the growing calls among our fanbase for his head, with the gaffer believing some of the abuse has been personal since the start.

“Look, when I took the job, from day one, it’s been personal as far as I’m concerned. There are certain people out there who don’t think I should be in the job to start with so all I can do is accept it, try not to be too down with it because I know how quickly it changes”

“I’ve made a career of never giving in, so I won’t. I’ll keep trying my utmost to make us better.’

“I have to accept what’s coming my way. I don’t think all of it is fair but I can understand it because if I was a supporter the other day, I’d look at it and go: ‘You know what it is? I agree. Simply not good enough.’

“You can’t take it personally. ‘Under pressure’ is often used by you guys. It is part & parcel of what you have to handle & how you handle it.

“I always think you show respect & don’t get too down with it. I can roll up my sleeves & get stuck into it.”

“The performance the other night was not acceptable to any of us. If I was a supporter, I’d be saying ‘what the hell is going on?’ I can understand the frustration and anger of supporters. I picked the team – it’s my responsibility, totally.”

While these answers are as good as we could have hoped for, it doesn’t hide the fact that the Sheffield United game badly exposed his capabilities as a manager.

Everything we should have done to set up against the top flight’s rock bottom side we seemed to do the opposite. There are managers in the Northern League who could have made us more productive than what we saw on Monday.

It seems as though he won’t be under any pressure until we slide into that bottom three. With a tricky run of games ahead we could be in there sooner than we think.

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13 thoughts on “Bruce sends new message to fans calling for his head & claims it’s been “personal” since day one

  1. He’s made a career of never giving up apart from all the clubs he’s walked out, too many to list.

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  2. SORRY but before day ONE MD Charmless offered the position to Fat Sam…

    Showing exactly what ambitions the NUFC had for the future = NONE

    So when he turned the position down (thank God) Bruce was installed.

    ALL fans thought we had a lucky escape – yes Bruce had been given millions in previous clubs and not shown any sort of ability to MANAGE…

    ..but we all thought, let’s see what he does here – he said he loved the club – but what was frightening was Bruce coming out and saying he wanted to be loved like Rafa (!?)

    Rafa was liked because he is a MANAGER

    Not a chap that was a very good Defender in his time under a Brilliant Manager; sadly he’s got jobs in Management only because of this and hasn’t done anything but make millions on getting paid off for FAILURE!

    NOW it’s the FAN’S fault – but hold on he’s saying yes I picked the wrong Teams for every poor performance (!?)

    I had to laugh as PLEASE Bruce show me a decent performance over 2 years – cry, cry, it’s a work in progress, sob, sob, DRINK, DRINK, DRINK.

    EVERY game it’s been 5/6 changes in the HOPE he gets lucky = this ain’t management and combine this with him crying to the press every 5 minutes = GIRL’S Blouse!

    WE have some good players but their value has gone through the floor since Bruce started.

    ASHLEY and MD have left it too late in previous years = I BEG you – show good leadership and get a MANAGER in ASAP

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  3. Bruce replaced a manager with principles that had stood up to the owner.

    He only got the job because he’s prepared to let Ashley play Football Manager with transfers and never have a bad word in the media for our favourite sociopath.

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  4. AS the GREAT Shank’s said

    Football isn’t a matter of Life and Death – it’s more important

    Bruce has been given enough time to show exactly what he can do = simply not a MANAGER

    The guy has blagged the job and probably thinks what else do I have to do to get Ashley to give him millions to leave!
    Making a fortune on failure

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  5. Wrong selection is an understatement, when you start with so many central defenders, and one in attack, it is not surprising Sheffield United felt all their Christmas’s had come at once, for god sake let the opposition worry about our attack. You don’t win games if you don’t score goals, for god sake man grow a pair of balls and grab the bull by the horn and go for it. You can’t do worse than watching this toothless **** your fielding now.

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  6. Very Wrong…..
    On appointment 90% of the fan base were with Bruce including me, and willing to give him every chance. He chose to listen to the noisy minority saying it was “personal”
    I doubt now however 10% of the fan base can see a way forward, unless things dramatically change very soon, which i’m afraid we all doubt.
    The players have no passion, work rate, or momentum, and look like they are not representative of the shirt and the City.
    Also saying he never quits is a joke, ask Sheff Wed, Crystal Palace etc….

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  7. Same ***** he came out with at Villa, he’s a fraud , championship manager at best, its all tongue in cheek, he’s fault but still the same ***** week in week out

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  8. Well if he likes the club that much tell him to go and LET someone else take charge who has a clue . Nothing personal but he’s NO premier league manager

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  9. He’s NO GOOD in the championship either – as shown perfectly with Aston Villa

    Like there, the players only looked like a team when they sacked Bruce and brought in a MANAGER

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  10. He’s on the same level as Fat Sam ****, playing a 5 man defence against bottom of the league was insane . Longstaff looks like that kid who chases his wind swept beachball as it blows Down towards the waters edge. we have no pace no one in midfield to hold the ball, Shelvey is slow and old, Hendricks and Fraser are ****. Yedlin changes his haircut every game in the hope that he might find a one that makes him play better. Even Rafa said joelinton who? Poor Callum Wilson runs about like a teenager in a slasher movie, hoping to get a decent ball. Our best players are Darlow, brilliant should be England keeper better than baby arms,Murphy, Clark Almiron, ASMaxim. Ferdinand, Schar Ritchie, in fact Bruce’s subs bench was more impressive than the 11 he put on the pitch. Bruce you need to be gone. Ya *****

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  11. I have to strongly disagree. Many fans I spoke to felt the same way, he’s from the area, he knows how we think, he knows what we want and what we expect.
    Personally, if I’m paying my money and spending my time to watch my team play football then I want to see my team play football not chase the football around the pitch for an average 70% per match. If I wanted to see that I would go down the local field on Sunday.
    We want a team that tries but going out every match, even matches we should dominate like Brentford or Sheffield United and running around a field… constantly passing the ball back looking like we have no idea how to play has turned the fans.

    It’s not worth watching, there is nothing to get excited about, the team look like they either don’t want to be there or have no creative ideas….and the most creative players on he bench when we need them most.
    Andy Carroll has been more effective than Joelinton, but Joelinton constantly starts and Andy rarely gets a run out….he’s from the area too, he has more passion for that team than most of the others. Even the young lad Anderson had more ideas and more ambition than half the team, it’s bad when a “youth” player is showing up so called professionals.

    Decisions like this has turned fans. Yes there have been injuries, illnesses and suspensions but the options have still been there.

    All I can say Mr Bruce with respect, Sort it out or just get out, your choice……just make it real soon so we can get out of this mess.

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  12. Come on Steve, if you care so much for the toon, do the right thing and step down, assuming you do give a sh*t about the club!!

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