Steve Bruce -wtf is he doing?

[Sluffy]

I've got to be honest and start off by saying that I've never been a Steve Bruce fan but what the hell is he up to in this transfer window - am I missing something or as he gone stark raving mad?

Today he's signed John O'Shea (30 years old) and Wes Brown (31) (and is after Darron Gibson) for £12 million!!!

He's given them both FOUR year contracts!?

He's signed the young lad Connor Wickham from Ipswich for £8.1 million down rising to £12 million - on a 4 year contract - but no one thinks he will be ready for the Premier for a few more years yet - just as his contact will run out!

He's brought in midfielders Craig Gardner and Sebastian Larsson (the same midfielders that just helped get Birmingham relegated!).

He's after Blackpool's David Vaughan to join them in midfield.  Vaughan did have a good season last year but at 28 years old he's kicked around at a lower level without being noticed for quite a while - so was last year a flash in the pan or his true form?

He's also signed Egypt midfielder Ahmed Elmohamady - who played on loan for them last season.

He's also signed a 20 year old Korean striker Ji Dong-Won and Coventry keeper Kieren Westwood (who I guess must be better than Craig Gordon).


So is Bruce putting together THE team of next season, or as he completely lost all his marbles?

I just can't see what the hell he is doing?

[Le God]

O'Shea and Brown are just bog standard prem players not much difference between them and Wheater for example just because they've played for utd for years people seem to think they're special.

Larsson - never been a fan people seem to rave about him but he's always anonymous when i've seen him.

[DannyW]

Bruce is just following the Sunderland way. Massively overpay for, at best, average players. They'll do okay next season i think but with the sort of money they spend every year, they should be challenging for Europe at the very least.

[bolt-on]

Giving 30 year old's 4 year contracts is Madness in it self.

[Big_Sharps]

The only really good signing he has made is Connor Wickham, he will without doubt be a future England international.  You have a point that it could take a year or two for him to become a premier league player and by then the other clubs could be sniffing and they are forced to sell rather than lose him for nothing is his contract runs down.

Larsson is a bit hit and miss for me but a pretty decent signing but the others are madness like you said, they have picked up Brown and O Shea pretty cheaply in terms of the fee paid but the lengthy contracts are madness.

Steve Bruce is just another one of Fergies bum boys and I hope he fails and he gets sacked this season.

[H. Pedersen]

As Danny alludes to, he's simply following the Keane model of buying your way to mid-table mediocrity.  Still, the level of squad bloat isn't all that surprising as it's probably a reaction to last season's injury crisis and subsequent fall down the table.

[Fred Scuttle]

Has anybody pointed out that Steve Bruce is a potato-headed fanny that wouldn't get a loyalty card off of Tesco yet?

[doffcocker]

Its as if he wasn't loved at Old Trafford enough already.

He's signed 2 (possibly 3) players that most United fans would be happy to drive to Sunderland for free. And he's given United good money for them.

[Malcolm Everett]

Good post sluffy. For starters what a contrast it has been with how many players Sunderland have signed compared to us. I think he did brilliantly getting £20m for Jordan Henderson, I have seen him in matches about 6 times and he has never stood out at all to me, I must be missing something there because he doesn't look a £6m player nevermind a £20m player.
But yes his signings have been pretty dull. If Coyle had about £25m to spend and signed Brown, O'Shea, Vaughan, Larsson, Gardner and Wickham I think we would feel pretty uninspired. I was sure they would spend big on a proven striker this summer, maybe Bruce feels Wickham is ready to be a first team starter.
One thing is for sure though, no matter how odd his signings are, they aren't a patch as bad as Roy Keane's were for them. £9m for Craig Gordon, £5m for Chopra, Greg Halford £2.5m, David Connolly £1.4m, Anthony Stokes £2m, Paul McShane £2.5m, Russell Anderson £1m, Danny Higginbotham £2.5m, Andy Reed. £4m. Charlton, George McCartney £4.5m, Anton Ferdinand £8m, Teemu Tainio £4m, David Healy £1.2m to name a few of his dud signings.

[ReebokTrotter]

Watch the shoite hit the fan at Sunderland when they under-perform yet again.

[ReebokTrotter]

According to today's tabloids Bruce is looking to take DJ Campbell to Sunderland for 1.2 million. Another snip.

[Squidgy]

He's trying to do what Allardyce did about 10 years back, but the dimwit brought his cheque book.

[Natasha Whittam]

I bet the Sunderland fans don't give a shite, it's not their money. At least they have a bit of hope.