The new owners at Aston Villa chose to refrain from sacking Steve Bruce as manager after a public newspaper poll revealed overwhelming support for him to stay on, according to the Mirror.
The newspaper claim on their website that the new Villans chiefs, Nassef Sawiris and Wes Edens, were plotting to get rid of the former Sunderland coach after seeing him fail to take the club back to the Premier League, thanks to a defeat in the playoff final, but the fans’ backlash crucially convinced them to stick instead of twist.
It is stated that Villa fans voted 70 per cent in favour of keeping Bruce as manager in a local newspaper, and that this was a decisive factor as to why he has stayed.
Opinion
And some fans say their opinions do not matter in the running of their clubs. If this is true, then it is testament to those Villa supporters who took the time out to air their views and make sure the new men in charge knew how they felt about Bruce. Yes, he might have fallen at the final hurdle in the playoffs but he has more experience than nearly every other manager in the Championship, and with the right backing, he has proven to have what it takes to get out of the division and back into the top flight. He might not be everyone’s cup of tea – approximately 30 per cent of Villa fans it seems – but if it comes down to the risk of having a new, unproven manager in charge, with the likes of Thierry Henry touted, or keeping someone who has been there, done it and got the t-shirt (or in this case promotion), then the supporters should be happy to see Bruce stay on.