- Amanda Staveley has apologised after making a critical comment about Bruce
- Bruce lasted just one game after Newcastle’s takeover before losing his job
- The damage has already been done. Not even beating Liverpool can save Ten Hag – It’s All Kicking off podcast
Amanda Staveley has apologised to Steve Bruce after she claimed he did not want to work following Newcastle’s controversial £305million Saudi-backed takeover in 2021.
The new ownership group made up of Staveley’s PCP Capital, Jamie Reuben’s RB Sports & Media, and Saudi Arabia’s public wealth fund purchased the club Mike Ashley in October 2021.
After the Saudi Arabian consortium took control, one of their first acts was to sack Bruce after just one game – with an £8m payout.
Staveley’s apology reads: ‘I would like to clarify a comment I made in a recent speaking engagement.
‘While commenting on Newcastle United at the time of the club’s change in ownership, I suggested the club had a coach who did not want to come to work.
Amanda Staveley has apologised for claiming that Steve Bruce didn’t want to work after Newcastle’s Saudi takeover
Bruce lasted just one game after a Saudi-backed consortium took control of the club in October 2021
‘This suggestion was not correct; Steve Bruce was fully committed to his role at the club and always came to work during this period.
‘I would like to make that clear that it was not my intention to question or undermine the professionalism of Steve, who was always professional throughout my dealings with him and committed to achieving the best for Newcastle United.
‘I am happy to clarify my comments and I offer an apology to Steve for my comments and any unintended consequences.’
Bruce told The Telegraph that an apology was sufficient and he will not be seeking damages.
Staveley had made critical comments about Bruce as well as the club’s fanbase at a conference in Jeddah.
‘There needed to be dramatic change because the club had been run in a very different format,’ she said at the Bloomberg Power Players’ summit.
‘We had few commercial revenues, we had a team that was aging, a fan base that was angry, and a coach who basically didn’t even want to come to work.
‘We had to inject it with life.’
Staveley has released a statement saying that Bruce was ‘always professional’ and ‘committed’
Bruce, a boyhood Newcastle fan, feared he would lose his job amid the takeover – and his fears proved correct
From the day of the takeover, speculation had swirled that the new owners were keen to move on from Bruce as soon as possible.
When asked about whether he thought his role would be affected, the boyhood Magpies fan had been clear-eyed about his dim prospects.
‘I want to continue, I’d like the chance to show the new owners what I can do, but you have to be realistic and they may well want a new manager to launch things for them,’ Bruce said on the day of the takeover.
‘New owners normally want a new manager. I’ve been around long enough to understand that.
‘That decision is not up to me. I accept that and I will accept what comes my way. I have to wait to have those conversations with people when the time is right.
‘If I don’t make it to a 1,000 games against Spurs, you might say that could only happen to me, but I don’t think it would be cruel. It’s just football.’
Just 13 days later, Bruce left by mutual consent and Howe later guided the side out of the relegation places to finish his first campaign in 11th.
