Newcastle United legend Alan Shearer revealed he told Steve Bruce not to accept the manager’s job at the club.
Bruce was officially appointed as Newcastle manager on Wednesday and replaced Rafa Bentiez, who left the club after a disagreement over the director it was heading.
Shearer met with Bruce around the time that Benitez revealed he would not extend his contract and he immediately told his friend not to take the “toxic” job.
“My advice to him was simple: ‘No, no, no, don’t take it!” Shearer said in his Sun column.
“I said: ‘Why are you going to be any different to Keegan or Benitez? If you take it, you must be mad because you know how it works there.’”
The club’s all-time leading scorer added that Bruce was not the club’s first choice to replace Benitez and Newcastle may have seen it as a straightforward appointment.
“It looks more like he could have been the last man standing — and Newcastle just knew he would probably take the job because he has always wanted it,” he said.
“Steve can have no excuses at all if it goes wrong because he knows exactly what he is taking on.”
Bruce angered both his former club and the Newcastle supporters in the process of accepting the Premier League job. 58-year-old resigned as Sheffield Wednesday manager to speed up the process of joining Newcastle, but the Championship side are now seeking advice and claim that “legal issues” are yet to be resolved.
Newcastle supporter groups united and released a joint-statement condemning the “unambitious appointment” and said Bruce “isn’t even a safe pair of hands”, pointing to his two relegations from the top-flight.
A mass boycott is being planned for Newcastle’s first home game of the season against Arsenal.
“This is without doubt the toughest and most toxic situation Steve has ever walked into,” Shearer added. “Then there is the fact Steve used to manage Sunderland, which is not going to help him, even though he is a Geordie and he played for Wallsend Boys Club like I did.
“He’ll do a good job just to keep Newcastle up this season.”
