Simon Jordan reveals Steve Bruce text message exchange over West Brom job

West Bromwich Albion have reportedly offered Steve Bruce the chance to succeed Valerien Ismael in The Hawthorns hot-seat.

Ismael left Albion on Wednesday after back-to-back defeats left the club clinging onto their place in the Championship play-offs.

Former Aston Villa boss Bruce, who was sacked by Newcastle United in October, has emerged as the frontrunner to become Albion's next manager.

TalkSPORT claims Bruce plans to accept the job, despite suggesting that he would retire from management after being given the push by Newcastle.

“I think this might be my last job,” Bruce, now 61, told the Telegraph in October. “It’s not just about me, it’s taken its toll on my whole family because they are all Geordies and I can’t ignore that.

“They have been worried about me… especially my wife Jan. What an amazing woman she is, incredible, she’s just a fantastic woman, wife and mother and grandmother.

“She dealt with the death of my parents, hers have not been very well. And then she had me to worry about and what I’ve been going through the last couple of years.”

The chance to win another promotion to the Premier League might be enough to tempt Bruce back into football though.

Simon Jordan is one of Bruce's biggest admirers and employed the Geordie as Crystal Palace manager two decades ago.

He has revealed a brief text message exchange he had with Bruce on Thursday morning.

On talkSPORT, Jordan said: “I sent him a text this morning saying ‘are you bloody mad?’ And he said ‘yeah, I think I am’.

“Not in terms of taking the job of West Brom, but getting back into the mix after such a difficult time at Newcastle.”