• Manager had cabbage thrown at him on Tuesday
• Bruce took over at Villa in October 2016
Steve Bruce has been sacked by
Aston Villa after a sequence of one win in 10 matches. Bruce took the club to last season’s Championship play-off final but a disappointing start to this campaign has prompted the owners, who took charge in July, to make the change.
The atmosphere at Villa Park on Tuesday night turned toxic as Villa were held to a 3-3 draw by the bottom club, Preston. Bruce, who took the job in October 2016, had a cabbage thrown at him and there were chants for his dismissal. Villa missed a stoppage-time penalty to leave them 12th in the table.
Villa confirmed the sacking in a statement in which they said Bruce’s assistants had also had their contracts terminated.
“We would like to place on record our gratitude to Steve and his team for their hard work and commitment,” the statement said. “We wish them well for the future. The process of recruiting a new manager has begun. In the meantime, Kevin MacDonald, Aston Villa U23s manager, will be in charge of the team for our trip to Millwall on Saturday.”
Bruce accused the supporter who threw a cabbage at him before the game of showing a lack of respect. “Unfortunately, it sums up the society we are in at the moment,” he said after the match. “There’s no respect for anyone. Certainly for someone like him, I’m surprised he knew what a cabbage was. I find the whole thing hugely disrespectful.”