Neil Sedaka sang that ‘Breaking Up is Hard To Do” and so it appears to be proving for Steve Bruce and his former club Birmingham City. The new Wigan boss had plenty to get off his chest last week after his appointment at the JJB Stadium was delayed by a snag over image rights. This was only reconciled once Bruce had paid some of the money received back to Birmingham, causing him to publicly declare his ‘disgust’ for the way the matter had been handled.
True to form, Birmingham have today hit back, as reported in the Times.
“David Gold said: “I did not take it personally – I don’t think that Steve’s comments were aimed at me – but I was deeply disappointed to read words from him like ‘disgusted’. I think it was extremely unfair, very sad and very inappropriate and I will defend my club and chief executive.
“The information never came from us. Karren is the only one who would have that and that’s the last thing that she would do. It had to come from Wigan. And, anyway, we came to a compromise agreement that I would say was amazingly generous. I thought that would be the end of the matter.”
A cloud of uncertainty continues to hang over St Andrews due to the proposed £50 million takeover which has now been in the offing for months. It’s clear that Bruce felt uneasy enough over his future to jump ship – but who will have the last laugh in May when the fate of Birmingham and Wigan will be decided?