Newcastle United legend Alan Shearer insists he will not be returning to the club as manager for the second time.
The 40-year-old, who was in charge of the Magpies when they crashed out of the Premier League in 2009, has been one of the names linked with the post following the sacking of Chris Hughton on Monday.
But Shearer said: “I won’t be the next Newcastle manager. I can guarantee you that. I have said never say never but I can guarantee I won’t be the next Newcastle manager.”
The former England hitman then went on to criticise the decision to axe Hughton, with the Magpies currently 11th in the Premier League table after 16 games.
Shearer continued: “I wonder to myself where they think Newcastle should be, if they think they should be higher than mid-table because I’m not being disrespectful to the squad but they’re not going to be in the top six or seven.
“That isn’t Newcastle’s season. Newcastle’s season this year should be all about staying in the Premier League.
“At this moment in time there’s no danger of them (going down). They’ll be there because there’s teams that are worse than them.
“For me, Chris was doing a very, very fine job.”