Friend in need
BRUCE CAN TURN TO PAL JOSE
STEVE BRUCE will break with tradition this afternoon and find himself with a friend to talk to inside St James’ Park.
How he needs one too, considering the wretched time he is having at Newcastle United.
Two league wins since Christmas have left the Magpies flirting with relegation and people turning their backs on Bruce in droves.
In a season of huge lows, he found himself plummeting to new depths last week when the local newspaper ran a poll revealing 95 per cent of fans wanted him sacked.
The problem for Bruce is that the man who does all the hiring and firing on Tyneside couldn’t care less – and has decided to keep him in a job. So the torture for Bruce continues.
But at least he will today have the ear of someone who knows what it’s like to sit on managerial Death Row, when Jose Mourinho comes to town.
Like Bruce, Tottenham Hotspur boss Mourinho has been treading on thin ice himself this season, albeit in different circumstances.
Just two weeks ago these two rivals and big pals topped the bookies’ list of favourites when it came to who would be the next top-flight boss to be sacked.
The duo are both battlehardened from all of the punches football has thrown at them and both wear the scars of long careers in the game.
It is difficult not to admire the longevity of them and they have a lot in common. In Bruce’s case, he deserves huge credit for continuing to stare down the eye of the storm that has now engulfed him.
It has been suggested that the easiest thing to do would be to quit on his stool, walk away from St James’ Park and leave all the aggro behind.
It’s a fair point because Bruce doesn’t need the wages – and he certainly doesn’t need the hassle of working at a club which neglects progress in favour of accepting survival as success.
All Bruce is doing is pushing water uphill – and where on earth is the fun in that?
The Magpies host Spurs today in a game of huge significance at both ends of the table.
And if Bruce turns to Mourinho for some advice, before or after the clash, the Portuguese could do worse than tell his opposite number to do everything in his power to keep his team up – then tell Mike Ashley to stuff his job before his owner has time to wield the axe.