Writing’s on the wall for Steve Bruce: Richard Buxton

Steve Bruce's brief sideline as a published author has afforded him a rare cult following.

The Newcastle United manager's short-lived trilogy of football-themed murder mystery novels in 1999 are now considered collectors' items - purely because of how laughably bad they were.

But the plot of his tenure at St James' Park makes for a page-turner in its own right, after he was cast as the unwanted stepfather, hastily rushed through the door once Rafael Benitez found himself kicked to the kerb.

The Geordie Nation cannot wait to see the back of Bruce.

His long-awaited shot at managing his boyhood club may prove short-lived but has managed to surpass a low bar of expectation.

Before the Covid-19 pandemic took hold, Newcastle were eight points clear of the English Premier League's relegation zone and had reached the FA Cup quarter-finals.

Yet the club's die-hard supporters still refuse to be swayed by the 59-year-old's achievements.

Few tears will be shed when the former Manchester United captain does finally clear his desk.

That could be far sooner than even he anticipated, with the £300 million (S$527.8m) takeover by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund expected to be confirmed in a matter of days.

Bruce should have sought Roy Hodgson's advice on what to expect in the Tyneside hot seat.

Crystal Palace's elder statesman also discovered the pitfalls of following in Benitez's footsteps with a six-month spell at Liverpool in 2010 that the Anfield faithful are still struggling to forget.

Mark Hughes, too, might have offered some valuable pointers after succeeding Sven-Goran Eriksson at Manchester City, mere months before their Abu Dhabi takeover came to fruition.

Both men were hugely unpopular appointments that became little more than glorified caretakers who would tide over their ailing regimes until a new buyer could be found.

Neither is remembered with much, if any, genuine fondness by their respective former employers.

Bruce's complicated relationship with Newcastle means he will be even less of an afterthought. In 2004, he passed up the chance to succeed another managerial totem in the late Sir Bobby Robson, as his loyalty to Birmingham City outweighed any weekends spent on the Gallowgate.

When he took charge of local rivals Sunderland, however, ill-feeling turned into resentment.

Efforts to endear himself to the Mackems saw Bruce dismiss his Newcastle links as quickly as some of their fans have now abandoned morality over Saudi Arabia's questionable human rights record.

Rejecting his hometown club was bad enough; disowning them was unforgivable.

Little wonder, then, that there is zero appetite for him to stick around once the new owners, headed by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, eventually have their feet under the table.

Already supporters are clamouring for the return of Benitez - alongside a host of star-studded candidates that include Mauricio Pochettino and former Juventus boss Massimiliano Allegri.

Newcastle's own history suggests that Bruce is already on borrowed time.

Barely a month after Sir John Hall's 1992 takeover, Ossie Ardiles was replaced in the dugout by Kevin Keegan.

Mike Ashley, similarly, acted swiftly in deposing of Sam Allardyce for Keegan's second homecoming in 2008.

Like Ardiles and Allardyce, Bruce will be given his marching orders sooner rather than later.

Only the protracted end of the 2019/20 season provides him with any real breathing space.

When a decision is made on how the current campaign can finally finish, the clock will start ticking on the journeyman manager's tenure.

The stated ambitions of Newcastle's prospective new owners to reach the Champions League means the writing is already firmly on the wall.

Not even Bruce's literary talents will be able to save him from the inevitable axe.