Mass hysteria is unjust and unfair - Bruce
STEVE Bruce feels the recent criticism levelled at his Newcastle side by fans is over the top - for a team whose chief aim is to survive in the Premier League.
Magpies’ manager Bruce and his players have come under fire after bad results in the past fortnight, most notably their disappointing Carabao Cup quarterfinal loss to Sky Bet Championship club Brentford last Tuesday.
In all competitions, Newcastle have now gone four games without a win after they were also beaten 2-0 at Manchester City in the Premier League on Boxing Day.
Bruce has called on supporters to be more realistic about their position.
He said: “We had a bad week and some of the mass hysteria was njust and unfair.
“A lot of it was not right. I am probably going to say that but it is my opinion.
“All the fans are like we are, we have to accept where we are.
“It is as pretty straightforward as that.”
He added: “My remit is to make sure we stay and remain a Premier League outfit.
“That is what I will try to achieve. That is where we have been for the last three or four years.
“Of course, for Newcastle, in a lot of people’s eyes that is not going to be enough but that is where we are at the moment.
“We have to accept it and keep, as I have said many times, trying to move it forward.”
Despite the result, Bruce felt Newcastle deserved credit for their performance on a wet and windy night at the Etihad Stadium.
Newcastle have been one of the clubs hardest hit by the Covid-19 pandemic and they were without key pair Allan Saint-Maximin and Jamaal Lascelles due to the virus.
In addition, Jonjo Shelvey and Ryan Fraser were missing through injury and Fabian Schar and Federico Fernandez were just returning after illness and fatigue.
Bruce said: “There are plenty of positives to take out in terms of the attitude and application of the team, which has been questioned over the last couple of weeks.
“When I see people like Fab Schar, who has trained twice in five weeks because of the problems we had, with Feddy alongside him, they showed great resilience.
“We were beaten by a better team but the effort and the endeavour, work rate and attitude of the players was there for everybody to see.
“Yes, we were not good enough and we can improve.
“We gave away a poor goal at the wrong time but we made a fist of it and gave as good as wee got.
“That is all you can ask when you come to a big team like Manchester City.
“You have to try to have a game plan and stay in the match and see if you can cause them a few problems. For large parts it worked.”
STEVE Bruce is getting everything he can out of his Newcastle United side, according to TV pundit Tony Cottee.
The former West Ham striker feels the Magpies’ current position - mid-table and seven points clear of the Premier League’s relegation zone - is about right.
He said: “That is where they are and it is a decent start but the problem is when you lose against a team like Brentford.
“It has been a long, long, time since Newcastle won a trophy and they need to win something.
“They are all right at the moment because there are no fans in the stadium.
“When those fans get back and start moaning if they are losing they can put a lot of pressure on Brucie.”