Sunderland's chairman Niall Quinn expressed emphatic support yesterday for Steve Bruce, whom he said would remain as the club's manager even if Sunderland were to be relegated this season. Bruce admitted this week to wondering whether his position was becoming vulnerable after a run of 14 league matches without a win. That sequence was ended by Tuesday night's 4-0 home win against Bolton.
Quinn praised Bruce's qualities as a manager and said there was no question of losing faith with him. "I can assure you that even if we don't win another game between now and the end of the season, Steve Bruce will be manager here next year," Quinn said. "If we go down, he'll still be the manager."
Quinn attributed Sunderland's slump in form since a 1-0 win over Arsenal on 21 November largely to injuries, although he suggested Bruce had taken time to cope with the expectations of the 40,000 regulars at the Stadium of Light.
"When Steve came here [from Wigan Athletic] he knew he was coming to a big club, he felt it was a step up in his career, he felt he'd done his apprenticeship, worked his ticket elsewhere and made good success stories," Quinn said. "He knew the pressure was probably a little greater here, but there's been nothing like feeling it and living it for the six or eight months since then. He knows an awful lot more now."
Explaining why he was prepared to give Bruce so absolute a vote of confidence despite the loss of form and the danger of relegation, Quinn said: "I feel he shares the same passion that the fans have, the owner [Ellis Short] has, we all have. And he does it in a diligent way. The way he carries himself and projects our club is everything we wanted. We're trying to make a step up in the toughest league in the world, we know it's going to take guts and determination and hard work.
"He has a good transfer policy, gets things right tactically and in terms of motivation. The pressure in the Premier League is incredible and there were some tough knock-backs but we think he's the right man to get this club where we all want it. Every time Lee Cattermole makes a tackle, that's Steve Bruce in my mind. That's what he brought."
Quinn said Sunderland were aiming to become a top-10 side and escape the label of being a yo-yo club between the Premier League and Championship. However, he emphasised that the club had made financial provision to cope with relegation should it happen.
He said: "From the moment I came to this club four years ago, any player who comes here has to agree to take a 40% deduction in salary in the event of us getting relegated. Every single contract we have done is like that, including Darren Bent's. The reality is that not only would we be safe financially, we would also have a proper team to come back up."
