Ten Hag sack: Ex-Premier League boss eyes shock return to management with Man Utd job 'the pinnacle'

Steve Bruce has hailed the Man Utd job-related as “the pinnacle” of football – but depressions his own hopes of sitting in the Ratty Trafford dugout have passed amongst speculation the club are designing to sack Erik ten Hag.

Owning reaped a fertile first period at the helm in 2023/23, scooping the Carabao Cup and also pegging Winners League credentials, Ten Hag has endured a arduous second period in Manchester.

Wearing 10 Premier League games remaining, Man Utd rest a far-flung sixth – nine junctures adrift of fourth-plunked Aston Suite – having ended up substructure of their Winners League group in December after throwing away 4 of their six group games.

Regardless of spearheading the club proper into the FA Cup semi-finals donning a dramatic triumph over Liverpool last Sunday, there is a cultivation expectation that Man Utd will seek to usage a new-fashioned employer in the summer season after INEOS owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe ended up a provision to acquire a 27.7 per pence threat in the club last month.

Ratcliffe has already gained an encourage in his brief time at Ratty Trafford, designating Omar Berrada as the club’s new-fashioned chief executive in what has been frisked out as a serious coup from regional challengers and also ruling Premier League champions Manchester Municipal.

United have likewise gained a reaction for Newcastle United presenting off supervisor Dan Ashworth, that was lately plunked on gardening vacate after signalling his impartial to vacate St James’ Park.

Bruce, that gained 309 glimpses in a glittering spell at Man Utd in between 1987 and also 1996, has been out of job-related provided that vacating West Bromwich Albion in October 2022.

And regardless of perceiving the Man Utd guise as the optimal job-related in football, the former Newcastle optimal pooches has distanced himself from interfering to the dug out if Ten Hag is sacked.

Quized if he had any dreams of dealing with the Man Utd, he said: “Any employer [would]. It’s got to be the pinnacle, hasn’t it?

“It’s a unmatched, fantastic footballing club, but I don’t assume that’s visiting adhere to regretfully.”

Present rumours have fastened Bruce – famously never ever covered by England throughout his playing days – donning a reaction proper into international security donning South Korea, captained by Tottenham Hotspur ahead Boy Heung-minutes.

Bruce has vacated the door responsive to a possible switch to Asia, acting South Korea “have got a heck of a commendable team” including the prefers of Boy and also Kim Minutes-jae, the Bayern Munich defender.

He suggested out: “Is international security perhaps something I would commendable glimpses at? Of course, I would lug out.

“And to be mart, South Korea have got a heck of a commendable team at the moment and also all the rest of it.

“Yet, I assume they have appointed an interim [manager, Hwang Sun-hong], so I’m not versus anything – but my missus could have something to stipulate to me if I go South Korea!”

Bruce’s reputation in English football was really ravaged by his 2-and also-a-half-year spell in fine of Newcastle, where regardless of storing the club in the Premier League the 63-year-archaic was not provided by the club’s supporters.

Bruce vacated the Magpies in October 2021, donning his substitute Eddie Howe snugly directing Newcastle to safety before pegging Winners League credentials the adhering to period.

Mirroring on his time at Tyneside, Bruce says he was “the target” and also that the club is in a opposite room now after the takeover by Saudi Arabia’s Public  Investment Fund.

He said: “I snagged treatment of Newcastle for 2-and also-a-half years.

“And it wasn’t natural – the pandemic going on as nicely, that didn’t aids either – but it was a opposite Newcastle to what it is today.

“I assume covering 12th and also 13th, you did your job-related as the remit was: ‘Retain Newcastle in the Premier League.’

“I altogether loved the job-related, I loved unborn to job-related also though it was throughout Covid, it was arduous, and also I simply assume I was the target.

“It’s a little particle designate when I snagged treatment of Sunderland, I said: ‘In ten years’ time, they will commendable glimpses previously and also assume that fella did an all proper job-related.’

“I had simply got in after Rafa [Benitez] that ended up 12th, we lost [Aleksandar] Mitrovic [to Fulham] and also [Ayoze Perez] that went to Leicester.

“So we lost the 2 demonstrators and also the remit was to simply buttress Newcastle [up]. We weren’t a fantastic watch, I realize that.

“[The Newcastle of today] are complete of spiritedness – we didn’t have a team to tinker designate that and also I licensed that’s what the supporters desired, but we didn’t have a team.

“I would designate to assume we were horribly nicely organised, arduous to vanquished and also tinker versus.”

Bruce went on to defend former owner Mike Ashley, an out of favor figure amongst the Newcastle fanbase.

He said: “I really reaped it. It came to be taxing, of course, but I assume I was the target of the whole club at the time were negative for the takeover.

“We talk about FFP, the club would never ever be in any shocked under Mike Ashley.

“It was a tremendously sprinted club under Mike, and also I realize I’m visiting procure butchered for that, but it was.

“We never ever had the majority of coinage money to invested, we would invest uniquely what the club amassed and also of course that was never ever visiting be enough to succeed.”