Steve Bruce

[Demitri_C]

23 hours ago, Stevo985 said:

I don’t really see why wyness gets so much stick. 

He’s made one appointment which, whilst it hasn’t worked out, was by your own admission an obvious appointment to make at the time. I think most people agree with that. 

So why does he get so much stick?

honest question. 

I said same thing in wyness thread Stevo.

[JAMAICAN-VILLAN]

Couldn't find a way to post it here, but someone on Facebook has posted quotes from Bruce at Sunderland towards the end "The Mass hysteria from the fans is ridiculous and pathetic" "fans expectations unrealistically high" and the list goes on.

Just in case anyone was wondering if this circus act was only reserved for us.

Also goes in to talk about expensive buys he made and didnt know how to use.

WTF were we thinking?

Edited December 28, 2017 by JAMAICAN-VILLAN

[peterms]

23 minutes ago, JAMAICAN-VILLAN said:

Couldn't find a way to post it here, but someone on Facebook has posted quotes from Bruce at Sunderland towards the end "The Mass hysteria from the fans is ridiculous and pathetic" "fans expectations unrealistically high" and the list goes on.

Something here.

Quote

Sunderland manager Steve Bruce hits out at 'pathetic' criticism of his side's start to the season

Steve Bruce has labelled the “mass hysteria” of criticism over Sunderland’s start to the season as “ridiculous” and “pathetic” as he staunchly defended his position as manager.

Having signed 10 new players in the close season, Sunderland’s encouraging draw against Liverpool on the opening day was swamped by the disappointment of losing at home to old enemies Newcastle at the ­Stadium of Light last weekend.

The ferocity of the reaction to that was further stoked by a Carling Cup exit at Brighton that has led to some questioning of Bruce’s position.

That has understandably angered the former Manchester United captain. Bruce secured Sunderland only their third top-ten finish in 50 years last season and has overseen a steady progress that has seen the club enjoy a fifth consecutive season in the top division for the first time since 1984.

Born and bred in the North-East, albeit as a Newcastle fan, Bruce is well aware of the expectations at both clubs, but he rounded on media reaction to the derby defeat and accused some of his critics, local and national, of having an agenda against him.

“I find some of the mass hysteria that has engulfed us to be pathetic ,” said Bruce. “It engulfs you with two results – it’s really, really disappointing. I find some of it ridiculous.

“That’s why so many managers have sat here and found it so difficult. Thankfully my chairman and owner do not have that same sort of kneejerk reaction. I think some people have got an agenda against me, that’s how it looks to me at the moment. Niall [Quinn] and Ellis [Short] are disappointed too, but they understand what we are trying to do.”

Bruce will be looking for some of that understanding from his club’s supporters when he takes Sunderland to newly promoted Swansea today

 

Comments on a fans' site after his sacking:

Quote

Well, the (for me) inevitable news was confirmed today. As near enough to 39 years ago one Geordie manager arrived on Wearside and went down in Sunderland folklore, a man who hoped to emulate that success, Steve Bruce, has parted ways with our club.

Sadly, the way things have gone of late it would have been no surprise to some that Steve Bruce held on to his job, and come out with the same old clap-trap of "I'll turn it round" etc. Where as for others, his position is untenable.

It was indeed confirmed by the club today that he will be seeking new employment however, and for me, it was the right decision...

Whether you commend or condemn the chanting towards the end of the home defeat to Wigan Athletic, one thing that can't be argued is that his relationship with the fans was completely over. That defeat was the breaking point for many folks, including myself.

Steve Bruce had asked for more time repeatedly, insistent that he could turn things around sooner rather than later, but in the middle of a crucial run of games against Fulham, Wigan, Wolves and Blackburn, a minimum target of nine points was set by fans. Perhaps even seven points if things go particularly bad, but to be halfway into that run with one point from a possible six was almost beyond comprehension.

There were also broadsides fired at the fans during Bruce's reign. The now infamous quotes about having too higher expectations, an obsession with our neighbours to the north, and notably accusing us all of entering into a mass hysteria. Only following Franco Di Santo's injury time winner for Wigan last weekend did Bruce truly feel the brunt of some mass hysteria.

I think it's also fairly obvious Bruce was losing touch with the fans with the first of those comments, the one about expectations. I don't know one fan who "thought we should be in Europe and winning cups" to quote the man himself. All most sane SAFC fans wanted was a team to be proud of. Three home wins in the calendar year tells it's own story.

You could see from looking over at the bench every now and then that Bruce cut an exasperated figure. Moving Jack Colback and Sebastian Larsson to fullbacks whilst sending on Ji Dong-Won to seemingly run around a lot in the final few minutes of the previously mentioned Wigan game seemed to show a man completely out of ideas.

Which makes things all the worse when this is now very much his team. It's an easy, and often trotted out excuse for managers use that the team isn't performing because it isn't his. 15 of the 29 squad numbered players (if you include Asamoah Gyan) are his own signings, not including the likes of Marcos Angleri and Matt Kiligallon who remain in limbo, nor does it include the likes of Ryan Noble, Jack Colback, Jordan Cook and Louis Laing who were all given debut's under Bruce. John Egan has also been drafted in on occasions without actually playing yet.

This is now his team, and it isn't performing. Many other players have come and gone under Bruce too, it appears he's tried everything possible to get us going, however it's just not happened, and change is necessary. A new approach, a new voice in the dressing room to perhaps turn things around.

For all Bruce's foibles, there were some good times let's not forget. The 3-0 win at Stamford Bridge will live long in the memory, whilst also there were stand-out performances against Wigan last season, and Tottenham Hotspur too. Games against Manchester United have never been tighter. Without doubt there is progression from the Roy Keane Era.

Many people point to the losses of, and the failure to replace the likes of Darren Bent, Asamoah Gyan and Danny Welbeck as a key failing of Bruce, but it's worth remembering he was the one who brought them in, and as much as we may dislike some of them now as individuals, they were on there day top quality players.

There's also the likes of John O'Shea, Wes Brown, Nicklas Bendtner, John Mensah and Sulley Muntari as proof that Sunderland can attract some top names, and part of that comes down to the manager.

For a long long time, Sunderland were seen as a yo-yo team. Niall Quinn and Roy Keane saw to it that we got into the Premier League and remained there (with a little help from Ricky Sbragia). A proven Premier League side.

Steve Bruce came in later as the best calibre of manager we could attract at the time to a team which was perennially near the darker end of the Premier League with aspirations of achieving more.

Bruce went on to take us to tenth. By hook or by crook, tenth is tenth, and a solid achievement. He brought in a much higher class of player, however it seems now that we're ready for the next logical step. Someone who can take us to the top ten once more, and keep us there consistently.

The next appointment could be a key one in our future, if we're to avoid regression. I hope Ellis Short knows what he's doing.

 

[Keyblade]

33 minutes ago, Rob182 said:

How is people saying that 'not all is lost yet' them buying into the whole hysteria nonsense? Surely that's the opposite? Surely the people overreacting and calling for a new manager every time we drop out of the play-off places is... hysteria.

 

Everyone knows that Bruce and our team are under-achieving. The aim at the start of the season was automatic promotion. But as we've spent most of the season in the play-off places, you would say that our chances of promotion were still alive (until we dropped out of the Top 6 this week).

I feel like people think if we finish 6th then that means we'll get promoted. You still have to beat 2 top 6 teams to get there which we haven't managed even once this season. So no, it still doesn't look like we'll get promoted. Our chances of promotion are looking very slim. This is with ignoring the fact that not being automatically promoted is somewhat of a failure in itself.

I'm not sure what you're proposing, we should only sack the manager when it's certain we're not going to be promoted? We're halfway through the season and it looks like we are going to scrape into the playoffs at best (which you seem content with), and then limp out of the semi-finals. It's not hysteria to not want to go through all of that and give another manager a go.

Edited December 28, 2017 by Keyblade

[AvfcRigo82]

He likes Hysteria old Brucie don't he?

It's called -You're out your depth now Steve-

[AvfcRigo82]

Just now, Keyblade said:

I feel like if people think if we finish 6th then that means we'll get promoted. You still have to beat 2 top 6 teams to get there which we haven't managed even once this season. So no, it still doesn't look like we'll get promoted. Our chances of promotion are looking very slim. This is with ignoring the fact that not being automatically promoted is somewhat of a failure in itself.

I'm not sure what you're proposing, we should only sack the manager when it's certain we're not going to be promoted? We're halfway through the season and it looks like we are going to scrape into the playoffs at best (which you seem content with), and then limp out of the semi-finals. It's not hysteria to not want to go through all of that and give another manager a go.

We have been saying this for weeks.

Maybe we have missed something?

[TheStagMan]

49 minutes ago, villarocker said:

When Bruce does get the sack he will have nobody to blame but himself. Fair enough, the players haven't performed as they probably could/should have at times but there is no doubting we have the attacking talent to be able to beat most, if not all, of the teams in this league. The tactics, or lack of them, together with poor team selection, are what has cost us this season.

Oh, he will find someone 

[Rob182]

1 minute ago, Keyblade said:

I feel like if people think if we finish 6th then that means we'll get promoted. You still have to beat 2 top 6 teams to get there which we haven't managed even once this season. So no, it still doesn't look like we'll get promoted. Our chances of promotion are looking very slim. This is with ignoring the fact that not being automatically promoted is somewhat of a failure in itself.

I'm not sure what you're proposing, we should only sack the manager when it's certain we're not going to be promoted? We're halfway through the season and it looks like we are going to scrape into the playoffs at best (which you seem content with), and then limp out of the semi-finals. It's not hysteria to not want to go through all of that and give another manager a go.

It's almost like you've not read a single word that I've posted 

 

I've said, right there in the post you've quoted, that Bruce is under-achieving. I never said our promotion chances are strong. I said they were 'alive'. Slim or not, they're alive. I also said (as you've just repeated back to me ) that the aim was automatic promotion this season. 

 

I wouldn't say I'm content with play-offs, but when you hire a manager because of his previous record, and he still has you in the play-off places with the remit to 'get us promoted this season', then it seems premature to get rid of him until it becomes clear that he will not be the man to take us up. 

Spoiler

Yeah, yeah, yeah, I'm sure you KNOW that he's not the man to take us up, yadda yadda yadda.

 

We hired Bruce because of his record in the Championship. So, like it or lump it, if he gets us back in the play-off positions, the chances are that he will be kept in charge because he still has that record of pulling it out the bag when it matters. If we either don't get back into the play-off positions in the next few games, or if he does but doesn't get us promoted via the play-offs, then I'll obviously be calling for his head too. But until then, it just feels a little.... ahem... hysterical. We're underachieving, but there are also mitigating circumstances, and that's before you get to the matter of this league not being as easy to climb out of as a lot of people like to make out.

[TheStagMan]

51 minutes ago, Rob182 said:

How is people saying that 'not all is lost yet' them buying into the whole hysteria nonsense? Surely that's the opposite? Surely the people overreacting and calling for a new manager every time we drop out of the play-off places is... hysteria.

 

Everyone knows that Bruce and our team are under-achieving. The aim at the start of the season was automatic promotion. But as we've spent most of the season in the play-off places, you would say that our chances of promotion were still alive (until we dropped out of the Top 6 this week).

We haven't

 

We broke into the top six on week 14, dropped out again week 24. That's 10 weeks out of 24, less than half the season and definitely way less than most of the season (Graph from the OS)

Edited December 28, 2017 by TheStagMan

[AshVilla]

It's laughable that he's still here.

His sacking is months overdue.

[AvfcRigo82]

7 minutes ago, Rob182 said:

We hired Bruce because of his record in the Championship. So, like it or lump it, if he gets us back in the play-off positions, the chances are that he will be kept in charge because he still has that record of pulling it out the bag when it matters. If we either don't get back into the play-off positions in the next few games, or if he does but doesn't get us promoted via the play-offs, then I'll obviously be calling for his head too. But until then, it just feels a little.... ahem... hysterical. We're underachieving, but there are also mitigating circumstances, and that's before you get to the matter of this league not being as easy to climb out of as a lot of people like to make out.

I don't have the confidence that he will be able to get us back into the play off positions now, let alone maintain that position until May or even win the play offs if we made it.

Like it or not, If we lose at Boro then it has to be curtains i'm afraid.

If we are to gamble our future and getting out if this league this season then I do not want Bruce to be rolling those dice.

[Dodgyknees]

A post doing the rounds on twitter, where Bruce used the same excuses ar Sunderland, to cover for the exact same performances and issues.

[Rob182]

1 minute ago, Dick said:

A post doing the rounds on twitter, where Bruce used the same excuses ar Sunderland, to cover for the exact same performances and issues.

I'm guessing it's the same way that Lambert used to recycle the "We go again" line. Managers have their standard comments they tend to make in certain situations. I don't really care about the same excuses he's making. What I would care about, is the similarities to overspending/ underachieving/ lack of Plan B etc.

[RotaxMax125]

I still think we are lucky to have Steve Bruce as our manager. What he needs to do though is to drill the mentality into those players to fight for it when we go a goal down. They should be thinking like a boxer that gets knocked down. Get up off the canvas, dust yourself off and fight back!!! As professional sports men this should be 2nd nature but it seems the message is not getting across. 

[Rob182]

12 minutes ago, TheStagMan said:

We haven't

 

We broke into the top six on week 14, dropped out again week 24. That's 10 weeks out of 24, less than half the season and definitely way less than most of the season (Graph from the OS)

Okay, I'll rephrase it that since we beat Fulham on the 21st of October we've been in the play-off places, until this week. The Fulham win was following a spell of 4 wins in 5, or 1 loss in 10, whichever you prefer the sound of. The point I was making, was that, although we've not hit the lofty heights of Wolves, we've still being steadily climbing up into a good position.

[DaveAV1]

6 minutes ago, RotaxMax125 said:

I still think we are lucky to have Steve Bruce as our manager. What he needs to do though is to drill the mentality into those players to fight for it when we go a goal down. They should be thinking like a boxer that gets knocked down. Get up off the canvas, dust yourself off and fight back!!! As professional sports men this should be 2nd nature but it seems the message is not getting across. 

NURSE!!!

[tomav84]

6 minutes ago, Rob182 said:

I'm guessing it's the same way that Lambert used to recycle the "We go again" line. Managers have their standard comments they tend to make in certain situations. I don't really care about the same excuses he's making. What I would care about, is the similarities to overspending/ underachieving/ lack of Plan B etc.

Don't forget "They're a great bunch of lads"...we do attract these don't we!

[Rob182]

7 minutes ago, AvfcRigo82 said:

I don't have the confidence that he will be able to get us back into the play off positions now, let alone maintain that position until May or even win the play offs if we made it.

Like it or not, If we lose at Boro then it has to be curtains i'm afraid.

If we are to gamble our future and getting out if this league this season then I do not want Bruce to be rolling those dice.

As I said yesterday, and don't take this as an insult , I think you're overly negative. Bruce's Villa aren't exactly filling me with confidence either, but I think us climbing back into the play-off places by January 2nd is do-able. I'm with you though, if we don't, or if we don't pick up at least 4 points from the next two games (which I've set as the minimum, in my head), then Bruce should go.

 

As boring as the football has been under Bruce (which, let's face it, we all expected. Right?) we have had a couple of spells of 3-4 wins on the bounce.

[AvfcRigo82]

7 minutes ago, RotaxMax125 said:

I still think we are lucky to have Steve Bruce as our manager. What he needs to do though is to drill the mentality into those players to fight for it when we go a goal down. They should be thinking like a boxer that gets knocked down. Get up off the canvas, dust yourself off and fight back!!! As professional sports men this should be 2nd nature but it seems the message is not getting across. 

Why is the message not getting across though? Is it the manager or is it now all the players? Or are the players now turning on the manager?

[DaveAV1]

The basic argument for keeping Steve Bruce seems to be that he might still get us into the playoffs and changing the manager is a big risk that may not work. Ok I accept both of those scenarios are possible. However I fear for the long term damage he is doing to the club. We now have a squad which is ageing with little chance of recouping anywhere near the money we have laid out. He hasn’t given youth a chance unless he’s beenforced into it and has got less out of his own signings than they were producing at their previous clubs. Every week he is inchage we don’t only lose points, we lose chances of progress in the future.