Steve Bruce has claimed that Sean Longstaff’s move to Manchester United was ‘never close’ and that he needed to ‘mature’ to develop into a good player.
The midfielder – who criticised the 62-year-old in an interview earlier this year – suffered a significant drop in form following his arrival, resulting in him being left on the fringes of the squad.
Bruce now claims that Longstaff needed to mature before he could see his true abilities develop on the pitch. Once again, Bruce seems to be placing the blame on the player rather than his own ability, with Longstaff showing great form both prior to and after Bruce’s reign at St James’ Park.
“I inherited Sean at a time where a big-money move to Manchester United was on the cards,” he told Gambling Zone. “Newcastle were turning down a colossal amount of money and that was swirling around at the time. Sean’s move to Man United was never close.
“He was insistent that it was at one point but I knew Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Mike Phelan. It was never on the cards. Sean was recovering from an awful injury. He’s entitled to his opinion (about me) and he’s shown maturity over the last couple of years.
“We had him almost five years ago. He was a lot younger then, a lot of things were swirling around and that was combined with a long-term injury. I’ve been nothing but impressed with how he’s got on and you have to accept that criticism of a part of management.
“Not everybody is going to like you and I never expected him to. It’s never given as a manager. There were times when Sean needed to mature and he has done. He’s proven to be a very good player.”
