EFL star told manager ‘I’ve signed for Benfica’ moments after being picked to play game

Steve Bruce was once told a player had joined another club an hour before leaving for a match.

It came just months into his first ever managerial role during the 1998/99 season.

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Almost three decades later, the former defender has managed over 1,000 matches including 477 in the Premier League.

Meanwhile, he is currently without a club having been sacked by Blackpool in October following 13 months in charge.

Back in 1998, though, Bruce had joined Sheffield United as player manager at the start of the campaign.

Although he would play his final match in November 1998, Bruce remained in the dugout until the end of the season.

Surprise transfer exit

However, his time at the club was not without its challenges, one of which came ahead of a trip to face Bristol City on December 5, 1998.

Bruce has revealed he had picked talkSPORT’s Dean Saunders for the match only to learn he had been sold prior to kick-off.

The striker left the team’s hotel to fly to Portugal and complete a move to Benfica an hour before they were due to head to the match.

Speaking to Hawksbee and Jacobs on Monday, Bruce recalled the interaction when asked if he had ever had this communicated from the club hierarchy over team selection during his managerial career.

The former Premier League manager explained: “I’ve had it where (they said) ‘why did you play that team?’ You have that, unfortunately.

“Even when I went back in, my first bit of management was Dean Saunders.

PA:Empics Sport

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“We were playing Bristol City, and I’ll have to say this about Dean, he’s good value on the radio and I enjoyed managing him for a short period.

“But we’re playing Bristol City away and he’s due to play, he’s playing. I’m the manager and I haven’t played for a few months and I’m the player-manager.

“I could hear him walking down the tunnel, walking down the hotel and this was about an hour (before leaving) and he was whistling away, singing away and I said, ‘Dean, we’re not leaving for another hour, why have you got your bags?’

“He said, ‘Nobody told you?’ I said, ‘Told me what?’ He said, ‘I’ve just signed for Benfica.’ I said, ‘What? Just signed for Benfica?’ He said, ‘Yes, I’m on the half past three from Heathrow.’

“He says, ‘Thanks ever so much Steve, it’s a pleasure to meet you,’ and walks out through the door and I thought, ‘Who am I going to call?’

“That was my first job in management and I thought, ‘Wow, wow, what do I do about this?’ And I found it very, very difficult I have to tell you.”

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Saunders had scored ten goals in just 23 appearances under Bruce for the Blades prior to his sudden exit.

United would go on to lose 2-0 to Bristol City, whilst the Welsh forward’s move to Benfica was completed three days later.

His time in Portugal saw Saunders score five goals in 19 appearances before returning to England the following summer at Bradford City.

As for Bruce’s Blades, they ended the season in eighth place in the First Division, now known as the Championship.

Having finished nine points adrift of the play-offs, he departed the club for Huddersfield Town at the end of the campaign.

It followed 54 matches in charge at Bramall Lane, which saw him taste victory on 22 occasions.