STEVE BRUCE (NEWCASTLE UNITED): Steve Bruce would have been a goner under normal circumstances. He had somehow managed to stay at the helm since former club owner Mike Ashley was slow to use the sledge-hammer. The sale of Newcastle United by Mike Ashley to the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund (PIF) surely signalled the end of the two-year stay of Steve Bruce at Tyneside.
Bruce joined the Magpies in 2019 and oversaw his 1,000th match in his managerial career recently which ended in a defeat, and it was also his final game in charge at Newcastle United - as the new wealthy owners fired him, with the club languishing in the relegation zone and without a win in the current Premier League season.
Bruce was appointed in the summer of 2019, replacing Rafa Benitez as manager after the Spaniard left the club blaming broken promises and lack of ambition of the then owner Mike Ashley for his exit.