IT’LL END IN TEARS BUT BRUCE CAN STILL BE HAVE-A-GO HERO
THE end of January is still some way off and we already have the quote of 2021.
No argument. Never mind all this stuff about not being good enough in transition or not being able to get beyond a low block.
Forget the waffle about players being in the red zone or the vagaries of VAR.
Steve Bruce had plenty of time to come up with an explanation for the defeat at Sheffield United but he knew there was only one. “Absolute s***e we were.” Mike Bassett would have been proud. And Bruce was right. “Fr***ing hopeless,” as he kindly elaborated.
It is probably the sort of language Mike Ashley understands and appreciates.
Not what he wants to hear, granted, but it will make little difference in the short term.
If Bruce and Newcastle can tread sterile water in the Premier League, Ashley will do nothing, especially when there will not be tens of thousands of fans inside St James’ Park, howling their disapproval, until August at the earliest.
The pelters for Bruce and Ashley (right) come only via social media and the airwaves, and there is always a mute button for that sort of stuff.
You cannot mute 50,000 angry people inside a stadium.
But even if he can block out the online uproar, even if he can ignore supporters’ groups writing letters asking for him to
Kevin de Bruyne has probably had more possession than Newcastle United be sacked, what sort of managerial existence is this for Bruce? A lucrative one, sure, but it cannot be much fun being continually hammered by fans’ collectives and observers who watch Newcastle week in, week out. Let’s face it, he is never going to be accepted there and he knows it. So he might as well be hung for a sheep as a lamb – have some fun on the long road to inevitable departure. Bruce might not have the personnel to go all Bielsa on us but there has to be a means to more adventure. After his ‘hopeless’ declaration, Bruce said he was now going to do it his way. Let’s hope that means a little more gung-ho. Because while they may be sat 15th in the table, they are in the bottom three in most other statistical categories.
Total shots? Ranked 18th. Shots on target? 17th. Touches? 18th. Passes? 18th. Big chances missed? 19th. Times woodwork hit? 20th.
And most damningly dull of all, average possession? 20th. Bottom. Less than West Brom. Less than Sheffield United.
Kevin de Bruyne has probably had more possession than Newcastle United.
Bruce might still see his priority – the top line on his job description – as preserving Newcastle United’s Premier League status.
But Steve, it’s really not worth it, the grim defensive strategy is not worth the flak.
Starting at Arsenal tomorrow night, have a crack at it. Go cavalier. Loosen the negative tactics, throw a few more men forward.
Sound very basic? Yes. Sound like a recipe for a hammering? Possibly.
But one thing is for sure. It has to be bet