The ex-Birmingham City boss previously managed Chester at Hull City, while he also signed Hutton on loan from Tottenham Hotspur during his time in charge of Sunderland.
New Aston Villa boss Steve Bruce has told AVTV that he is relishing the chance to work with defensive pair James Chester and Alan Hutton again following his arrival in B6.
Bruce was officially confirmed as Roberto Di Matteo’s replacement on Wednesday afternoon, becoming Villa’s fourth permanent manager in the space of just 12 months after his predecessor, Remi Garde and Tim Sherwood each lasted less than 30 games at the helm.
The former Hull City boss, who had been out of work since leaving the Tigers in July, previously managed Chester during his time at the KCOM Stadium, when the Welsh centre-back was a crucial part of his side that secured promotion to the Premier League in 2013.
His prior spell in charge of Sunderland also saw him sign Hutton on loan from Tottenham Hotspur during the 2009-10 season, and the ex-Manchester United captain is looking forward to linking up with the Scottish right-back and his Villa teammate once again as he bids to turn around the claret and blues’ fortunes.
Asked about his reunion with Chester, who joined Villa from Midlands rivals West Bromwich Albion this past summer, Bruce told AVTV: “Well, I’m pleased so I hope he is! He played very, very well for me, Chessy. He did very well for me at Hull and I’m looking forward to working with him again.
“I also worked with Alan Hutton a long, long time ago too and look forward to working with him also. We have got a very, very good squad and it’s my job now to mould them into a team, get a winning mentality amongst them, make sure they work hard and try their best to succeed. If we do that, I’m sure we’ll not be far away.”
Interestingly, Bruce also offered a lifeline to exiled striker Gabby Agbonlahor by stressing that every player in the Villa squad would be starting with a clean slate under his stewardship.
The long-serving front man has been training with the club’s Under-23s since the start of the season after being deemed surplus to requirements by Di Matteo, but his new manager seems prepared to give him another chance to resurrect his claret and blue career.
“For all of them, I’m not really interested about what’s happened in the past,” Bruce added. “As a group of players and as a team, they haven’t maybe had the results that their performances have warranted.
“For all the squad, it’s a clean slate. Form the goalkeeper to the 25th player, positions are up for grabs and I’ll pick the team on merit.”
Bruce takes overs with Villa sitting 19th in the Championship with just 10 points from 11 games, having seen Di Matteo record only one win in charge before being sacked following a 2-0 loss at Preston North End earlier this month – the team’s third league defeat of the season.
The former Birmingham City manager faces a local derby in his first game on Saturday when Wolverhampton Wanderers visit Villa Park, with matches against Fulham and Reading to follow over the next week before he then returns to St Andrew’s on 30 October for another all-Midlands clash.
“I’m looking forward to it immensely,” Bruce told AVTV on getting started at Villa. “I’ve always enjoyed going to work and let’s hope I can get off to a good start – that’s always nice!
“I couldn’t have wished for anything better; live on the TV, local derby – let’s bring it on.”
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