It’s a done deal. Mike Ashley’s 14-year era at the helm of Newcastle United has ended with the new ‘Magpies’ owners worth £700 billion seeking to emulate the success of Manchester City FC.
Thousands of fans who congregated outside St James’ Park will be drawing up fantasy wish-lists after Amanda Staveley – a driving force behind the takeover – who vowed to transform the club into Champions League contenders.
“Do we want to win the Premier League within five to 10 years? Yes,” Staveley said. “This takeover is hugely transformative. We want to see trophies. But trophies need investment, time, patience and teamwork.”
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“Of course we have the same ambitions as Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain in terms of trophies. Absolutely, but that will take time.”
The takeover proceedings commenced in April 2020 but looked to be off when consortium pulled out last year; however, a significant barrier was removed when Saudi state resolved issue with beIN Sports over illegal streaming of the English Premier League.
