Steve Bruce says his aim is merely to keep Newcastle United in the Premier League just months after stating the top 10 was a possibility this season.
The Magpies lost 2-0 to Man City on a night in which Bruce made references to “heavy criticism” and “histrionics” after the defeat to Brentford.
United now face Liverpool at home in the Premier League to see out 2020.
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Bruce said tonight: “My remit is to keep Newcastle in the Premier League this season and keep trying to edge the club forward.”
When asked if the hysteria he referred to was in about the Brentford defeat, Bruce simply replied: “Yeah.”
When asked about the night overall Bruce said: "It was a difficult night but the way they played, I've got no problems with it.
"Fabian Schar has trained once in five weeks but wanted to play, the attitude of them all was there to see.
“We have got a large chunk of players missing. I don't want to make excuses but we are struggling for numbers.
"We had to respond to heavy criticism and made a fist of it. We weren't good enough on the night but we tried to stay in the game and it was a huge improvement.”
Bruce explained that Jonjo Shelvey was missing through a knock.
He said: "Jonjo Shelvey had a groin injury and he is not right, he has played too many games.
“We will see if we can get a few back, once we do I'm sure we will be OK."
