TalkSPORT pundit Trevor Sinclair: 'We should apologise to Newcastle United fans'

Alarm bells among the United fanbase began to ring long before Bruce’s side went 11 matches without a win between mid-December to late-January.

During that period, the Magpies wasted the opportunity to advance into the semi-finals of the Carabao Cup following a 1-0 loss at Championship outfit Brentford.

Not long after, a new low was reached in the Premier League when Sheffield United claimed their first victory of the league season at the 18th attempt.

The dismal performances, coupled with an awful run of form – just two wins in 20 matches – has sent Bruce and possibly the club to the point of no return as they stare down the barrel at a third relegation in 12 years.

And Sinclair, speaking to talkSPORT, admitted it is perhaps a case of ‘I told you so’ to large sections of the broadcast media.

He said: "Callum Wilson is an elite Premier League striker. If he's in that side, they will win games. They will pick up points.

"If he's not, I'm looking at the squad and thinking 'where do the goals come from?' It's a huge problem. There's not been enough investment.

"The fans told us months ago that this was going to happen and we almost palmed them off and said 'behave yourself, you've got so many points in advance'.

"In a way, we should apologise to the fans because they saw this coming.”

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