Mike Ashley 'changed his mind' on Newcastle United takeover bid

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An overseas investor put a deposit down on a move for Newcastle United following takeover talks, according to a report.

Owner Mike Ashley agreed a £300million sale to a consortium led by Amanda Staveley last year.

However, the Premier League didn’t make a timely decision on the deal, and Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund withdrew their support.

Ashley is trying to resurrect that sale through legal action – an arbitration hearing is set to be held this month, and there’s also a separate Competition Arbitration Tribuanl case – but a report in The Athletic claims that American investor John Texor put a deposit for a takeover in an escrow account earlier this year.

However, Ashley, it’s reported, “changed his mind” on the proposed deal. Florida-based Textor, a digital media entrepreneur, has since moved on to Crystal Palace, whose American co-owners Josh Harris and David Blitzer are looking to sell the stakes they bought in 2015.