The Black Cats previously had Bruce as manager at the Stadium of Light, but now he has linked up with the Magpies.
A number of Sunderland fans have taken to Twitter to mock bitter North-East rivals Newcastle United following the club’s appointment of Steve Bruce.
On Wednesday morning, the Magpies announced that the Corbridge-born coach had taken the reins at St James’ Park, succeeding Rafael Benitez at the Tyneside club’s hotseat.
Bruce is well known to Sunderland fans, having managed at the Stadium of Light between June 2009 and November 2011, when he was sacked by the Black Cats following a poor run of form.
The 58-year-old joins Newcastle after a short stint at Sheffield Wednesday in which he was appointed in January, took over in February and guided the Owls to a 12th-place finish in the Championship.
Bruce’s appointment has not gone down particularly well amongst the Toon Army, given the circumstances in which Benitez left when his contract expired in June, saying the club “did not share his vision” (BBC Sport), and having switched from a Champions League winning manager to one somewhat lesser heralded.
Following a tricky period in the Black Cats’ history in which fans haven’t had too much to shout about in recent years, some of them could not resist finally having the chance to have a laugh at their rivals’ expense.
Here is some of the Stadium of Light faithful’s response to the development up the A184:
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