Aston Villa's owner Dr Tony Xia hit back at critics before his club's crucial Championship game at Newcastle by insisting manager Steve Bruce is in place because he has 'guts'.
Xia also said he did not take over Villa in order to make money and claimed parachute payments would not cover half of the squad's wage bill.
Villa are on a disastrous run of six defeats in eight winless games and in danger of dropping into a relegation scrap, sitting in 17th and just six points above the drop zone.
Bruce has come under scrutiny from supporters for overseeing the sequence despite bringing in six players during the January transfer window, including £9million striker Scott Hogan.