Jamaal Lascelles: 'Newcastle United players to blame for Steve Bruce departure'

Newcastle United captain Jamaal Lascelles has stated that the departure of manager Steve Bruce was the fault of the players.

Following the Saudi Public Investment Fund's takeover of the club at the beginning of October, rumours of Bruce's departure quickly began to swirl, and he was dismissed on Wednesday after suffering a defeat to Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday.

Speaking to reporters, the centre-back said: "When we are performing as we do it is going to put a lot of heat on the manager. We need to be accountable and look at ourselves as well because there comes a point when it doesn't matter who is in charge, if the collective as players are not doing it, it doesn't matter," as quoted by The Mirror.

When asked whether the sacking came as a surprise to the squad, Lascelles continued, saying: "We all looking at the social media and stuff. Uncertainty doesn't help when you don't know if the manager is staying or going. A lot of things have happened recently."

The English manager departed with the Magpies sat in 19th spot without a win from their opening eight games of the Premier League season, after he guided them to 12th and 13th-placed finished in his two full seasons at the helm.

Former assistant manager Graeme Jones will take temporary charge of the side while the new hierarchy look for a permanent appointment, with the likes of Lucien Favre, Paulo Fonseca and Eddie Howe all linked with a move to St. James' Park.