Originally posted by JudgeRed
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Steve Bruce takes his team to Anfield tomorrow accompanied by a sense of relief that Roy Hodgson rather than Rafael Benítez will be occupying the home dug-out.
Sunderland's manager is no fan of his former Liverpool counterpart. To put it mildly. "I know for a fact we won't have all the antics we had with Rafa, what with his ways and his carry-ons," Bruce said.
He and Benítez were never close but fell out spectacularly over the latter's mischievous pursuit of the former Sunderland forward Kenwyne Jones on a mooted, but never completed, loan deal last season.
Even though Benítez is now at Internazionale and Jones at Stoke City, the issue still rankles with Bruce who believes the Spaniard unsettled the centre-forward. "I thought Rafa Benítez's behaviour to us last season was an absolute disgrace," he said, shaking his head. "What he did over Kenwyne ... But I'll certainly be having a drink, probably a glass of nice red, with Roy Hodgson after the game.
"I really hope Roy does very, very well at Anfield. But I know one thing – he'll definitely conduct himself better than the previous Liverpool manager."
Hodgson is considered to be under pressure following a rocky start to his new life on Merseyside but Bruce believes the former Fulham manager's critics should look closely at the legacy he was bequeathed by Benítez. "Roy inherited a very difficult job," he said. "I'd expect that, with all the money Rafa spent at Liverpool, Roy would have thought he'd have been left more strength in depth than he's got."
Bruce believes it is ridiculous that his old friend's job can be regarded as in jeopardy after such a short time in charge. While he accepts the reality that Hodgson's position is already under uncomfortably close scrutiny, Sunderland's manager urges the Anfield board to give a man applauded for his work at Fulham last season time to properly settle in.
"We all know the way the game now is," Bruce said. "And October is a terrible month for British managers. But, given time, Roy will be fine at Liverpool. He's one of the game's good guys. He's a fantastic coach who has inherited a difficult job."
Moreover the well-travelled Hodgson belongs to a traditional managerial breed, which Bruce heartily approves of. "Roy's old school and I still think the old school is the best way," he said. "Old-school managers have something about them, a certain respect for others." In contrast he regards the somewhat less collegiate Benítez as decidely new-school and is convinced that, in time, Liverpool will benefit from a reversion to more gentlemanly ways.
The same cannot be said of the Merseyside fans, who Bruce expects will subject him to an array of insults along the lines of "fat head". The former Manchester United centre-half is well used to it. "I think the Liverpool supporters are trying to tell me I haven't got a beautiful head," he said. "But the strange thing is my Mum thinks I'm lovely."
Fat headed ****.
Sunderland's manager is no fan of his former Liverpool counterpart. To put it mildly. "I know for a fact we won't have all the antics we had with Rafa, what with his ways and his carry-ons," Bruce said.
He and Benítez were never close but fell out spectacularly over the latter's mischievous pursuit of the former Sunderland forward Kenwyne Jones on a mooted, but never completed, loan deal last season.
Even though Benítez is now at Internazionale and Jones at Stoke City, the issue still rankles with Bruce who believes the Spaniard unsettled the centre-forward. "I thought Rafa Benítez's behaviour to us last season was an absolute disgrace," he said, shaking his head. "What he did over Kenwyne ... But I'll certainly be having a drink, probably a glass of nice red, with Roy Hodgson after the game.
"I really hope Roy does very, very well at Anfield. But I know one thing – he'll definitely conduct himself better than the previous Liverpool manager."
Hodgson is considered to be under pressure following a rocky start to his new life on Merseyside but Bruce believes the former Fulham manager's critics should look closely at the legacy he was bequeathed by Benítez. "Roy inherited a very difficult job," he said. "I'd expect that, with all the money Rafa spent at Liverpool, Roy would have thought he'd have been left more strength in depth than he's got."
Bruce believes it is ridiculous that his old friend's job can be regarded as in jeopardy after such a short time in charge. While he accepts the reality that Hodgson's position is already under uncomfortably close scrutiny, Sunderland's manager urges the Anfield board to give a man applauded for his work at Fulham last season time to properly settle in.
"We all know the way the game now is," Bruce said. "And October is a terrible month for British managers. But, given time, Roy will be fine at Liverpool. He's one of the game's good guys. He's a fantastic coach who has inherited a difficult job."
Moreover the well-travelled Hodgson belongs to a traditional managerial breed, which Bruce heartily approves of. "Roy's old school and I still think the old school is the best way," he said. "Old-school managers have something about them, a certain respect for others." In contrast he regards the somewhat less collegiate Benítez as decidely new-school and is convinced that, in time, Liverpool will benefit from a reversion to more gentlemanly ways.
The same cannot be said of the Merseyside fans, who Bruce expects will subject him to an array of insults along the lines of "fat head". The former Manchester United centre-half is well used to it. "I think the Liverpool supporters are trying to tell me I haven't got a beautiful head," he said. "But the strange thing is my Mum thinks I'm lovely."
Fat headed ****.
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