Newcastle co-owner claims Steve Bruce 'didn't even want to come in to work'
Amanda Staveley has claimed that Steve Bruce 'didn't even want to come into work' when her Saudi-backed consortium completed their takeover of Newcastle United.
The new ownership group made up of Staveley's PCP Capital, Jamie Reuben-led RB Sports & Media, and Saudi Arabia's public wealth fund the Public Investment Fund (PIF) purchased the club from Sports Direct chief executive Mike Ashley in October 2021.
Under their new owners, Newcastle were quick to make changes, with one of their first orders of business the sacking of Bruce, who had been managing the Magpies since July 19.
The former Manchester United captain had just one game in charge at the start of the new regime, overseeing a 3-2 defeat to Tottenham at St James' Park before he was handed an £8million payout and replaced by current head coach Eddie Howe.
But Staveley has suggested that Bruce had been unwilling to do his job in the build-up to the controversial takeover, which took place as the club languished 19th in the Premier League table.
'There needed to be dramatic change because the club had been run in a very different format,' Staveley said in comments made at the Bloomberg Power Players' Summit in Jeddah.
'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.'
From the day of the takeover, speculation had swirled that the new owners were keen to move on from Bruce as soon as possible, and when asked about whether he thought his role would be affected by the influx of Gulf state funding, the boyhood Newcastle fan had been clear-eyed about his prospects.
'I want to continue, I'd like the chance to show the new owners what I can do, but
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