‘Steve Bruce wrong to single out Matt Ritchie’ – Former teammate Jamie O’Hara hits back at Newcastle United boss for ‘slaughtering’ player in public

Newcastle United manager Steve Bruce has faced criticism for publicly shaming Matt Ritchie in the press, following reports of a physical bust-up between the pair in training.

Bruce singled out substitute Ritchie for criticism to reporters following Saturday’s 1-1 draw with Wolves, accusing the winger of not passing on tactical information from the touchline that apparently could have prevented the visitors’ equaliser at St James’ Park.

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Reports then emerged this week of a heated clash between the pair at the Magpies' training ground, in which Bruce is said to have ‘shoulder barged’ the player while Ritchie is claimed to have branded his boss a ‘coward’.

Newcastle have not commented on the incident, but it is understood Ritchie has apologised and the matter is now considered closed.

But the reports of in-house fighting have only added to the pressure on the Magpies, who find themselves deep in relegation trouble. Newcastle have won just two of their past 15 league games and have slipped to within three points of the relegation zone, with 12 matches of the season remaining.

Bruce's position has been questioned throughout the campaign, with supporters moaning about the team’s poor performances during his reign and amid wild speculation he could be sacked.

And talkSPORT pundit O’Hara, who played with Ritchie at Portsmouth, says Bruce made a mistake by publicly digging him out and has only piled more pressure on himself.

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“I don't think Steve Bruce should have come out and slaughtered him in the media,” he said on Thursday’s talkSPORT Breakfast.

“At the moment, where they’re at as a team and a club - and with Steve Bruce on thin ice as it is in terms of his job - you’ve got to be really careful with how to talk about your players in the press.

“When a player hasn’t been involved, he comes onto the pitch and he’s the one getting dug out for making a mistake…

“You’ve got to be really careful about singling out players in the press, I don't really understand why managers do it.

“Slaughter him in the dressing room or on the transfer ground and say, ‘I’m not happy about it’, but you’ve always got to be very careful; players are quite sensitive now and he’ll have the hump with it.

“I think he made the right decision in saying, ‘I’ll speak to you on Monday', because after a game emotions are high, so for Bruce to say, ‘I want to speak to you now, I’ll speak to you Monday about it’, I don't think that’s a problem and Ritchie should respect that.

“Matt isn’t a bad egg; I played with Matt at Portsmouth when he was first starting out and he’s a great lad, he wants to work hard and he’s had a great career.

“I don't think he’s someone who would come into the training ground and cause problems, he’s not that kind of player and he’s not that kind of man.

“So I'm surprised to read that he said he’s not going to see the manager, and then Bruce has had to come out and then they’ve had it off on the training pitch.

“That to me spells disaster. When you’re in a difficult period as a manager and results aren't going your way, you need the dressing room.”

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Former Premier League midfielder, and current Dundee captain, Charlie Adam also had his say on talkSPORT, claiming the situation at Newcastle would be a lot worse if they had a team of players who didn’t care.

The Scot insists there’s nothing wrong with a bit of passion, even if it boils over from time to time when things get tough.

“They’re in a dog fight and obviously when tensions are high it culminates into people saying things you might regret,” said Adam.

“I’ve seen that Matt Ritchie has come out and apologised to his teammates, which is good.

“This is the world we live in - people care, people are passionate. If it was a player who didn’t care, that would be a bigger worry.

“They’re in a dog fight and they understand that, Newcastle are under a bit of pressure and Matt Ritchie has just taken the brunt of it, that’s all.”