Magpies fans’ fury ‘justified’ after Brentford loss
LONDON • Newcastle manager Steve Bruce conceded that the criticism levelled at him in the wake of Tuesday’s 1-0 League Cup defeat by Championship club Brentford was fully justified but that it would not force him to step down from his role.
Josh Dasilva’s second-half volley denied the Magpies not only their first League Cup semi-final berth in over four decades but also extended their trophy drought dating back to 1955.
The result sparked a furious reaction on social media, with fans calling for Bruce’s sacking as he had fielded a strong line-up in contrast to some previous cup ties, only for his side to flop against second-tier opposition who had left their star forward Ivan Toney on the bench.
“The supporters are entitled to their opinion so I have to accept what is coming my way,” he said “That is part and parcel of being the manager of Newcastle.
“You have to accept the criticism, which is fully justified. We haven’t done enough, so we have to accept what is coming our way.
“We always knew it was going be difficult but we expected to perform better than we did.
“Unfortunately, we haven’t done enough, so we have to accept what is coming our way and get ready for what is a huge challenge ahead of us in the Premier League.
“I can’t hide my disappointment because we’ve had a great opportunity to get into a first semi-final in many years. I’m bitterly disappointed and very, very frustrated.
“It’s good to get to a quarter-final but obviously not great when you’ve got a great opportunity to go further, so there’s a lot of disappointed people today because we’ve missed a big opportunity.
“I am a resilient so-and-so, so I have to accept what is coming my way. I understand social media. All I can do is dust myself down and go back to work tomorrow.”
For Brentford, less than five months after their play-off final loss to Fulham at Wembley where they failed to gain their first promotion to the Premier League, Tuesday’s win went some way to making up for that painful loss.
The Bees are now in their first major cup semi-final, and having beaten three Premier League teams in a row to reach this stage, they want another Wembley final appearance on April 25.
Manager Thomas Frank said: “To get over the line and create a new chapter in Brentford history, that’s a big step. It shows how far we have progressed as a club.”
REUTERS