Steve Bruce favourite to take over at Newcastle United

As Newcastle United search for a new manager following the departure of Rafa Benitez at the end of last month, bookmakers are slashing odds on boyhood Magpies fan, Steve Bruce.

The Sheffield Wednesday boss who lead The Owls to a 12th place finish after taking over in February, has been linked to the Newcastle job before and has reportedly turned the role down on two previous occasions.

Newcastle owner Mike Ashley had Bruce on his list of replacements for Benitez, albeit quite far down the pecking order as he believed he wasn’t a big enough name in the managerial world to take the job on.

The former Sunderland and Hull boss has dismissed any link to the North East club. Speaking to Radio Sheffield, he said:

“Maybe because I’m from Newcastle. But no, I’ve been on holiday. I never take any notice of all that sort of speculation or tittle-tattle because the way the newspapers are today, no disrespect, I think there have been 150 managers associated with Newcastle. I would suppose I’m going to be one of them.”

Despite the lack of evidence that the club has even made contact with Bruce, bookmakers have slashed the odds for him to take on the role to just 2/1 with some bookmakers such as Paddy Power and Betfair offering evens.

You’ll find a number of potential candidates available to take a punt on with many bookmakers listing over 100 names.  The shortest odds behind Bruce are Mikel Arteta at 6/1, Jose Mourinho at 8/1, John Terry at 9/1 and Sheffield United boss Chris Wilder at 13/1.

The squad are currently set for their pre-season trip to China and will hope that a new manager is appointed soon for their opening match against Arsenal at St James Park on 11th August. Despite the current on-goings at the club and the lack of signings, bookmakers are still offering odds of over evens for an away win which is a bet many will no doubt be jumping on. If you’d like to read more tips for football matches, 101greatestgoals is the best site for football tips online and cover a wide range of leagues and matches.

Despite the huge potential a club the size of Newcastle United has, many managers in the industry will think long and hard before taking the job if offered. If previous seasons are anything to go by, owner Mike Ashley will not be looking to invest large sums of money into strengthening the team or facilities and so anyone who takes the job may need to work with what they have. There has also been talk of another potential takeover at Newcastle United which may deter Ashley from appointing a manager on a long-term contract as new owners may wish to appoint their own.