'This isn't over': What sources are saying about Newcastle United takeover as fans unite

Newcastle United will never be defeated.
Watch more of our videos on Shots! 
and live on Freeview channel 276
Visit Shots! now

That’s something which has long been chanted by fans.

However, uniting a fanbase around a single course of action is easier said than done, and protests against owner Mike Ashley have often been fragmented and even fractious over the last decade or so, despite the overwhelming desire on Tyneside for change.

At the start of last season, thousands of fans boycotted the first home game of the season. Many more turned up. And so on.

So what we have seen in the past week or so is remarkable.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Newcastle fans have seemingly never been more united. We’ve seen an incredible display of unity since the investment group led by Amanda Staveley and funded by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) withdrew from the takeover process over the Premier League’s failure to make a timely decision on a proposed £300million deal.

At stake is a further £250million investment in the club over a five-year period and more money for the city.

Almost 100,000 fans have signed an online petition calling for an “independent investigation” into the takeover process, while thousands of supporters have also lobbied North East MPs with the help of the Newcastle United Supporters Trust, which read a statement out from Staveley at a meeting last night.

Amanda Staveley.Amanda Staveley.
Amanda Staveley.

“We’re not just overwhelmed by your support, we’re humbled by it,” said Staveley.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

MPs, in turn, have written to Premier League chief executive Richard Masters. Prime Minister Boris Johnson has also called for a statement from the Premier League in a significant move.

But what’s the point? The takeover’s off, isn’t it? Yes and no. The consortium wants answers, and the Reuben brothers, we know, remain “totally supportive” of the deal and any efforts to revive it.

Staveley too wants to find a “way forward”, while PIF remain in the background. All have been emboldened by the support their bid, which ran into opposition over TV piracy in Saudi Arabia and the kingdom’s human rights record, has received from supporters.

The Premier League is now under intense pressure, both in public and private, and sources close to the deal insist that it’s not over – yet.