Bruce tried to sign N’Zogbia from Wigan in the summer, but the winger ended up joining Villa in a £9.5million deal.
N’Zogbia has failed to make the expected impact at Villa since joining the club.
Bruce signed N’Zogbia while in charge of Wigan and is confident that he could manage to get the best out of the winger.
A Wearside source told The People: “Steve Bruce signed N’Zogbia for Wigan and knows he can get the best out of him.”
