Watford boss Claudio Ranieri has offered his support to Steve Bruce after the former Newcastle boss' departure yesterday.

Bruce left his role as Magpies manager on Wednesday, 13 days after Amanda Staveley's Saudi-backed consortium completed their takeover of the club.

Ranieri faced similar scrutiny over his job at Chelsea when Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich bought the Blues in 2003 and, despite lasting a whole season, he was sacked following a second-place finish and Champions League semi-final appearance.

Speaking ahead of Saturday's trip to Everton, the Italian said: “No I haven't spoken to him, not yet but I want to congratulate him for the 1,000 matches.

“I know it will be very sad. I know what happened in this case because it happened for me in Chelsea, in Monaco and something also in Leicester. I am very close to him, so I can give support if I can."