Steve Bruce breaks silence on Newcastle United job

The club wants the Bruce to succeed Rafa Benitez as manager at St James’s Park. However, it has not yet agreed a compensation package for Bruce and his Hillsborough backroom team.

Corbridge-born Bruce, a boyhood United fan, spoke to the media after this afternoon’s 3-1 friendly win over Lincoln City at Sincil Bank.

Bruce hopes the two clubs “reach a compromise” over the weekend.

“Speculation is speculation,” said the 58-year-old, who was confronted by a Wednesday fan at the game.

“It's in the hands of the clubs. For me, at this particular moment, there’s nothing really to talk about, until the two clubs reach some sort of compromise.

“Look, it’s happened so quickly that I’ve got to take stock of the situation. It's in the hands of both clubs, and we’ll see what develops over the next 24 to 48 hours. It's football – it’s come from nowhere, really, in the last two to three days. We’ll see what the weekend brings.”

Benitez left Newcastle on June 30 after turning down the offer of a new deal at St James’s Park.

The 59-year-old – who guided the club to a 13th-placed finish in the Premier League last season – had been unhappy with the terms of the offer from owner Mike Ashley, who wanted him to have less control over transfers.