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NEW Sunderland boss Steve Bruce insists it was never his dream to manage his boyhood idols Newcastle.

Bruce left his post at Wigan to sign a three-year contract on Wearside this week, admitting that this was the chance he had been waiting his whole managerial career for.

The former Manchester United defender, born and bred on Tyneside, has twice rejected overtures to take over at Newcastle in favour of staying at Birmingham – first following the sacking of Bobby Robson in 2004 and then in 2006 when Graeme Souness was axed.

No man has ever managed both Sunderland and Newcastle and, by taking the job on Wearside, Bruce is aware he has effectively ruled himself out of managing his hometown club.

However, he is entirely comfortable with his decision.

He said: “Managing Newcastle has never been my dream.

“This opportunity at Sunderland has everything I want – the infrastructure, the fanbase, an ambitious chairman and an ambitious new owner.

“I don’t need anything else – I have everything here. Everything you look for as a manager is here at Sunderland.

“This is a big club with a big history and a long tradition.

“All the off-field components are there, and we need to build a team to take things forward.”

After breaking off from his holiday in Portugal to finalise his switch to Sunderland, Bruce has now resumed his summer break.

He is looking forward to returning later this month and working closely with chairman Niall Quinn to revamp the Sunderland squad and start chasing the transfer targets he has already identified.

Bruce added: “I have admired Niall Quinn for a long time – he is one of the good ambassadors for the game.

“Good chairmen are hard to come by. I was lucky to work with Dave Whelan at Wigan, and I am now looking forward to working with Niall.”

Meanwhile, former Sunderland boss Roy Keane has been linked with a triple transfer raid on his old club as he looks to strengthen his squad at Ipswich.

Sources in East Anglia say Keane, who left the Stadium of Light in November and took over at Ipswich in April, has sounded out the possibility of signing Carlos Edwards, Daryl Murphy and Paul McShane.

Edwards played in more than half of Sunderland’s Premier League games, but made only six league starts. He has one more year left on his contract and is believed to be looking for an improved deal, which Sunderland have shown no signs of offering him so far.

Both Edwards and McShane were signed for Sunderland by Keane, while he inherited Murphy from the Mick McCarthy regime.