Ex-Newcastle United & Sunderland boss ‘in talks’ over shock move after Copa America disaster
Steve Bruce has been out of football since leaving West Brom in October 2022
Former Newcastle United and Sunderland manager Steve Bruce is in talks to make a stunning return to football with the Jamaica national team.
Mail Sport reports that the ex-Manchester United captain has held productive talks with officials from the Caribbean country, who are currently ranked 59th in the FIFA World Rankings.
Jamaica are searching for a new manager to replace Heimir Hallgrimson, who resigned from the post shortly after his side’s Copa America campaign, which culminated in the Reggae Boys finishing bottom of their group and losing all three games against Ecuador, Venezuela and Mexico.
Hallgrimson, who previously masterminded Iceland’s Euro 2016 win over England, won 11 of his 27 games with the Jamaica national team, and has now been tasked with trying to restore the fortunes of the Republic of Ireland national team.
Bruce’s arrival at Jamaica would signal a shock return to the sport after nearly a two year hiatus from club football. The 63-year-old’s last stint in management was an unsuccessful six-month spell at Championship promotion hopefuls West Brom, which saw him win just eight of his 32 games in charge as he left with an overall win record of just 25%. The Corbridge born manager’s career spans 11 clubs, over 1,000 games and more than a quarter-of-a-century of experience.
His last stint in the Premier League came with Newcastle United between July 2019 and October 2021 when he was surprisingly selected by Mike Ashley to replace Rafael Benitez in the dugout. Bruce was credited with leading Newcastle to survival in both of his first two seasons but results began to unravel in his final months as he left the Magpies bottom of the table and winless in their opening 11 games before Eddie Howe’s arrival.
The experienced coach has previously hinted at his retirement but could now be tempted to make a return to football this summer. The Jamaican national team currently boasts a host of Premier League talent including Leon Bailey of Aston Villa, Michail Antonio of West Ham, Bobby De Cordova-Reid of Leicester City and Brentford’s Ethan Pinnock.
Jamaica have won both of their World Cup qualifiers so far and have been drawn in a group which features the likes of Guatemala, Dominican Republic, Dominica and the British Virgin Islands.
The nation has not qualified for the World Cup since 1998 when they were managed by Brazilian René Simões. On that occasion they managed one victory against Japan but were unable to advance to the knockout rounds after defeats to Argentina and Croatia.