It looks like this is in the verge of going through.
Potentially it could be another artificially inflated club riding high in the Prem. It is supposed to be a separate Saudi entity from the ruling family/government, but I don’t see how that can be properly enforced.
Are the Prem being weak on the fit and proper person test?
Will the new owners throw money at them?
Will FFP offer any sort of meaningful resistance?
Big question marks over the whole thing. Conceivably it strengthens the case for our owners to exit, or try the European Super League again in another guise.
Barcode fans will be happy. Starved of success they will be thinking of better times to come, on the pitch.
As far as I am aware, more real fans in Newcastle over fake city support.
I think they will spend, however it might be tougher to get players there (not a big enough draw, city wise or club prestige). Will have to overpay on both transfer fees and wages in order to overcome not being a huge draw. It will be like city In he beginning, except with stricter rules on financing (some form of FFP).
You can expect some ridiculous sponsorships from Saudi state based companies.
I mean the sole reason the Arab city states buy football clubs is to generate positive non human rights crime PR. So I can see the Saudis investing very heavily…they have the most crimes to white wash.
It’s a real shame because there wasn’t much to hate about the club until now.
Not afraid of them. ‚At best’ they will be able to attract B+/ C- players like Zaha or Richarlison. It might mean that they will be able to keep Saint-Maximin for a long time.
Will take them 6 years to transform that squad into a Top8 Team.
Might even be over before it really starts - and that doesn’t even require them to get relegated this season.
But if this goes through I really hope they go down this season and never come back like Sheffield United.
Guess the fans will be delighted because all that’s important to them is winning a football match. who the fuck cares that you are propped by a despotic regime only intent on sport washing and improving their public perception.
If people thought Qatar and City’s owners were bad enough , MBS is a totally different beast.
If anyone thinks they will not mirror or better whatvhave done they are mistaken.
The club will receive serious investment, and players will go for the money.
City were a non entity until Abu Dhabi invested, and their growth was rapid enough.
Same with Roman Chelsea…
Money buys success, unless you have a different formula and exceptional people in key positions, Edwards/Klopp the prime examples.
As @GermanRed says its hard to hate them now. In fact I liked the Keegan version as we were not contenders at the time, but in 3 or 4 years time we will all despise them.
Football, as I knew it is well and truly fucked and this compounds it…thankfully we have a bit of moral high ground.
Not if some of our fans have their way. Which are the remaining autocratic resource-rich regimes left? Bahrain? Brunei? Oman? … or the big daddy…China!
You can play the human rights angle all day but Newcastle supporters won’t give a toss. They will be getting a hard on thinking they are the next City, PSG, Chelsea. I don’t think there supporters complain.
Well… minor demons had already bought their way into the PL in order to practice sports-washing and cheat their way to the top, but this one here is the big boss of all of them.
If this goes through, it’s a bit like Satan coming in after Mammon, Beelzebub and Baal prepared everything for him during a while. It will be the end of a great popular club, and the beginning of something that will make us retrospectively see Chelsea and Cheaty as annoying, but relatively harmless nuisances.
Shame, I like Newcastle as a club, and I wouldn’t wish being owned by Saudi Arabia to my worst enemy, never mind to them.
Most of them are just delighted to see the back of Mike Ashley. When you’ve had him running your club for 15 years seeing him replaced by a murderous regime intent on sports-washing their blood-stained reputation probably doesn’t seem so bad.
