By the end of the week it seems that Newcastle will have finally put Steve Bruce out of his misery and sent him off into the sunset with a decent pay off in his back pocket.
According to the Daily Mail, the new owners of the club are concerned that by leaving him in charge for the next match against Tottenham, it will negatively impact upon the team.
To that end, the report suggests he will be paid up his £8m severance package and left to enjoy his hard-earned.
A new managerial appointment is unlikely to be in place before the Spurs fixture, however, it’s believed a short list has been drawn up.
With Ralf Rangnick being considered as a sporting director, per The Telegraph, and the ‘Godfather of Gegenpressing’ known for his innovative methods, a forward-thinking and tactically minded coach is a pre-requisite.
It’s perhaps with that in mind that the Daily Mail note that Leicester City’s Brendan Rodgers is one of the early front runners to replace Bruce on Tyneside.
With experience at both Liverpool and Celtic, Rodgers would arguably be able to deal with the pressure and expectation from the new owners and the Toon Army.
Ditto Steven Gerard who is also believed to be in the frame.
Rangers would surely be loathe to lose a man who has restored the Scottish giants to the top of the tree north of the border, however.
One other candidate potentially being considered at this stage is former Borussia Dortmund coach, Lucien Favre, and the Bundesliga connection with Rangnick could make him the early favourite.
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