Hull boss Steve Bruce has scoffed at reports saying he could replace under-fire Alan Pardew as manager of Newcastle saying they were “disrespectful” to the current incumbent.
Pardew’s position became ever-more precarious following the 4-0 thumping that the Magpies endured on Saturday at Southampton.
The 53-year-old coach, who has a contract at Newcastle until 2020, deciding to skip the post-match press conference at St Mary’s.
But Bruce, all too familiar with managerial life in the northeast after a failed spell at Sunderland from 2009 to 2011, said he had no time for the talk of him taking over at St James’ Park.
He told BBC Radio Five Live’s Sportsweek programme: “It isn’t nice – it’s a horrible Sunday morning for him and I find it very, very disrespectful that I’m linked with somebody else’s job when he’s still in a job.
“It’s a hard enough job we’ve all got. We all know what it’s like now in football management.
“That part of the game will never change, but for me at the moment I’m just concentrating on the game against West Ham (on Monday night) and leaving all that aside.”
Bruce, who guided Hull to their first FA Cup final last season, added: “After what happened to me at Sunderland, it’s similar to what Alan Pardew is going through now.
“I know how difficult the northeast is. I’ve been here for a couple of years. Hull gave me that chance to get back up and running again and for that I’ll always be grateful.
“I’ve only been here a couple of years, and we’ve had a really good couple of years.”