Former Arsenal midfielder Jack Wilshere has revealed Steve Bruce tried to sign him when he was the manager of Aston Villa. Wilshere has defended Bruce for the criticism he has faced in the Newcastle hot seat, claiming the ex- Villa boss ‘knows his football’ and is a ‘football man’. Bruce’s position as Newcastle manager appears to be hanging by a thread with conflicting reports on whether he will be in charge of the team against Tottenham on Sunday for his 1,000th game in management. The purchase of the club by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund reportedly makes Newcastle the richest football club in the world, but Bruce is not seen as the man to begin the new era.
Jack Wilshere said: “It’s harsh. I’ve never worked with him, I’ve played with players who have played for him and have nothing but good things to say about him. I actually spoke to him once one summer when he was at Villa, he wanted to take me there. It was when I came back from Bournemouth and I wasn’t in the Arsenal team and he wanted to take me there. He was brilliant, it was a ten-minute phone call and I came off the phone thinking ‘wow, this guy knows football’ he’s a football man. It’s a tough job at Newcastle at the minute and I think he’s done a good job, he kept them up.”
