We were very interested in Steve Bruce’s quotes recent about why the Newcastle job may be his last.
The veteran of management gave a detailed interview about the nonsense he’s taken as boss, and why it could be a major reason the gig at St James’ was the final one, and here’s what he said:
“By the time I got to Newcastle, I thought I could handle everything thrown at me but it has been very, very tough. To never really be wanted, to feel that people wanted me to fail, to read people constantly saying I would fail, that I was useless, a fat waste of space, a stupid, tactically inept cabbage-head or whatever. And it was from day one.”
It’s not nice, is it? The football world came out in support of Bruce on these comments, but… and you knew there was a but…
Ibrox Noise has received a tonne worse than this pretty much on a weekly basis and we dare say other sites and groups are likewise.
We do not wish to see anyone in football abused, but for us this quote is pretty much part and parcel, sadly, of this sport, and if you can’t handle it you shouldn’t be in this game at all.
Bruce got harsh criticism, but it is and always has been a side effect of the Beautiful Game. Which is not to criticise anyone receiving unkind comments as being a wimp, but the reality is football is a deeply emotional sport and if fans in the crowd said ‘oh sir you didn’t play too well there’ we’d wonder what on earth was going on.
The stuff Bruce got actually seems a lot kinder than the downright aggressive garbage we and other groups have received, and if it’s too much for him then yes, football management is not the place for him.
This world requires a thick skin, others in our support have received far worse than Ibrox Noise have, and we’re well aware we get off lightly at times ourselves.
We do empathise with Bruce, and he has family issues which are infinitely more important than a bit of cruelty online, but he would have got even worse on the pitch as a player during the days before Man Utd became world class in the late 80s.
He probably just doesn’t remember it. Which is no bad thing.
If you can’t stand the heat, unfortunately we’d advise getting out of the kitchen.
He’s a good man, but maybe not quite strong enough any more to handle the garbage fans hurl.
Such is life.