West Brom Manager Steve Bruce He insists he is not afraid of his miserable spell at Newcastle as he sets his sights on promotion to the Premier League. Bruce was sacked by Newcastle in October following the arrival of the club’s new Saudi-led owners. A Newcastle fan as a child, Bruce’s dream job quickly turned into a nightmare as he lost the support of fans, struggled with unhappy players and had little financial support from the board. When Bruce was dropped, Newcastle languished in the Premier League relegation zone.
However, the 61-year-old has made a swift comeback in the dugout with second-tier West Brom and is adamant that there is no hangover from the turbulent times at Tyneside.
Reflecting on his Newcastle rule on Friday, 24 hours after his appointment at Albion, Bruce said: “Newcastle is gone, it was a chapter in my football life. I want them to succeed.
“It was a tough time for me but maybe in a few years people will think that passing 12th and 13th was not so bad.
“Now that that chapter has left me, I look forward to taking West Brom forward and I am very confident that I can do that.
“You see it and you want the criticism to go away. However the only way you can do it is to get back on the horse and not take the criticism too far.
“That was the real thing, to put it behind me, it went on and on.”
Bruce signed an 18-month contract at West Brom after the sacking of Valerian Ismail this week.
Albion slipped to sixth place in the championship after losing three of their last four matches under Ismail.
They are eight points away from the top two, but Bruce believes he can revive his challenge, having won four promotions to the top flight in a well-travelled managerial career.
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“I’ve always liked to think that I’ve had a good time in the championship, I’d love to make it five (promotion), that’s where I am,” Bruce said.
“I don’t sit here if I don’t think West Brom can join the Premier League.”
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