Newcastle United journalist Chris Waugh says he can't see Steve Bruce's position coming under threat 'any time soon'. 

The lowdown

Newcastle find themselves in 18th place after following up a 4-2 defeat against West Ham United on the opening weekend with a 2-0 loss at Aston Villa on Saturday.

As Chronicle Live journalist Lee Ryder notes, the Magpies have now lost 13 games over the course of the calendar year, and only Southampton and Burnley have suffered more top-flight defeats since New Year's Day.

Back in March, Bruce was able to survive after a 3-0 defeat to relegation rivals Brighton and Hove Albion left his side teetering just two points above the drop zone. He subsequently steered them to a 12th-place finish.

The latest

After the defeat at Villa Park, Waugh was asked by a supporter in a Q&A for The Athletic if Bruce's job is 'really ever going to be under threat'.

The journalist replied that he expects the hierarchy to maintain their policy of keeping faith in the manager, even to the point where it may not seem 'wise' to do so, saying: "The hierarchy stuck by him last season and have done with previous managers, perhaps beyond when was wise. I think they'll do likewise this season as well."

The verdict

There may come a point - perhaps if the long-mooted takeover goes through - that Newcastle need to dispense with Bruce to realise their lofty ambitions.

Realistically, he'll probably guide them to a steady lower mid-table finish this season, and those in situ might simply be happy with that.

It's also worth acknowledging that we are only two games into the new season, and there's a week of the transfer window still to go, so the activity on that front over the coming days could alter the picture somewhat.

In other news, Lee Ryder was critical of this man's performance against Villa