Newcastle United Appoint Steve Bruce as Manager on 3-Year Contract

Newcastle United have confirmed the appointment of Steve Bruce as their new manager on a three-year contract after the Englishman resigned from his role as Sheffield Wednesday boss. 

The Magpies confirmed Bruce as Rafael Benitez's successor on Wednesday, and the 58-year-old said he is relishing the challenge that awaits at St James' Park:

A boyhood Newcastle fan but former Sunderland manager, Bruce had only been in charge of Wednesday since February.

However, he emerged as the leading candidate to replace Benitez after the Spaniard left at the end of June, and he will now take up his first Premier League job since he was relegated with Hull City in 2015:

Newcastle will be the 10th club Bruce has managed since he cut his teeth in the dugout with Sheffield United back in 1998-99.

The former centre-back was successful as a player, most notably winning three Premier League titles and a European Cup Winners' Cup with Manchester United. 

Bruce's credentials as a manager, though, cannot come close to matching those of his predecessor at Newcastle.

Benitez was appointed Magpies boss in 2016 having managed Valencia, Liverpool, Inter Milan, Chelsea, Napoli and Real Madrid, and boasting a trophy haul that included two La Liga titles, the UEFA Cup, the UEFA Europa League, the FA Cup, the Coppa Italia and the UEFA Champions League.

He went down to the Championship with Newcastle in 2016 but immediately led them back up by winning the title in 2016-17, and he then oversaw 10th and 13th-place finishes in the Premier League.

Bruce will do well to match those results given the quality of his squad, and he may well have to prepare himself for a relegation battle in 2019-20.