Alan Shearer condemns Mike Ashley for role in Newcastle’s demise

The former Newcastle striker is upset at the way the club is currently being run

Shearer feels sympathy for Bruce (AFP)

Alan Shearer has deplored owner Mike Ashley and the Newcastle board’s conduct to leave Steve Bruce exposed this season amid the team’s current slump.

The Magpies are situated in 15th place, seven points ahead of 18th placed Fulham, but Bruce’s side are now six league games without a victory, with just four goals in that run.

After becoming the first team to suffer defeat at the hands of bottom-of-the-league Sheffield United, the pressure is building on Bruce.

And now some fans have begun calling for a change to ensure Newcastle are not caught up in a relegation battle, but Shearer places the blame firmly on Ashley and managing director Lee Charnley.

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“What really irks me is how little protection Steve has received from the people above him, ” Shearer writes in his column at The Athletic. "Where is Lee Charnley?

"What happened to that statement of his where he admitted the error of not communicating with fans? Where is his backing for the manager? Where is the strategy? Come on, Lee, where are you? Where is anyone, aside from Steve?

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"I can’t believe he’s having to deal with questions about furloughing staff, giving tickets away, about coronavirus, about a takeover. These shouldn’t be issues for the manager. It’s a tough and lonely enough job as it is. The point is, he’s on his own.

“It would have been the same if somebody else had come in and it will be the same for the next manager and the one after that if nothing else changes, because it’s the way Newcastle are built under Ashley. The manager takes it all on his shoulders; a concentration of anger, stretching back years.”