Ruud Gullit arrived on Tyneside in 1998 with a clear stated objective - to turn Newcastle United into a side who played "sexy football". However, the Dutchman's methods in achieving his goal ensured that he was gone barely a year later - and his resignation was celebrated by Magpies fans. Gullit was determined to remove the experienced "old guard" at St James' Park and replace them with alternatives - with midfielder Rob Lee stripped of his No 7 shirt and instead given 37, but it was the fight the former Chelsea star picked with local hero Alan Shearer that ultimately proved to be his undoing. Despite originally rating Shearer, Gullit came to believe the striker had become too comfortable at St James Park - and that the England captain was not pulling his weight for the side. Shearer and Lee had a large presence in the dressing room, though, and Gullit did not calculate how difficult a fight this one would be to win. Having dropped Shearer to the bench for the 2-1 home derby loss to Sunderland after weeks of goading his top striker, Gullit resigned the following day once the fans turned their back on him - with many afterwards referring to the team sheet the manager picked that day as his own suicide note. As many Newcastle managers have found over the years, Shearer was undroppable in many Magpies fans' eyes - and that is why Gullit is a villain on Tyneside.
NUFC editor for WhatCulture.com/NUFC. History graduate (University of Edinburgh) and NCTJ-trained journalist. I love sports, hopelessly following Newcastle United and Newcastle Falcons. My pastimes include watching and attending sports matches religiously, reading spy books and sampling ales.
