There is 'no doubt' that Steve Bruce will be relieved of his duties at Newcastle United in the wake of Sunday's defeat against Tottenham Hotspur, according to The Daily Mail's Craig Hope on Twitter.

The lowdown

Newcastle were beaten 3-2 in their first game under the club's new ownership, leaving them second from bottom in the Premier League table. Furthermore, their tally of 15.47 expected goals against ranks as the worst in the division (via Understat).

The expectation had been that Bruce would be sacked in the build-up to the game, a move which would have pleased many on Tyneside. In a recent survey conducted by The Athletic, 97% of Newcastle fans interviewed called for his dismissal.

The latest

In a tweet shortly after the final whistle of the Spurs game, Hope did not hold back in outlining how poorly Newcastle had played, insisting that the players must take their share of the blame, and added that he thinks it won't be long before Bruce's managerial tenure comes to an end.

The journalist said: "For 10 minutes NUFC looked like a team re-energised. For the remainder they reverted back to what we've seen for so long under Bruce. Players also need to look at themselves after that. No doubt change of boss will happen quickly. It all felt a bit ugly towards Bruce at end."

The verdict

You could argue that Newcastle ought to have made the change already, as it certainly felt as if Bruce was on borrowed time.

On the other hand, perhaps the club are waiting until they have a successor ready to step in before they pull the trigger, as otherwise they could be left with an inexperienced caretaker in the midst of a season where their Premier League future already appears to be on the line.

The longer they wait to act, the more they may need to fork out in January to build a relegation-proof squad. As Hope has said, it's hard to escape the sense that Bruce is merely seeing out time at St James' Park before he is replaced.

In other news, Newcastle have received a 'massive' boost over one player