Further developments have come to light this week with regards to the latest possible takeover talk of NUFC. It’s early days but after years of frustration under Ashley’s reign, it’s hard not to get too excited. It could potentially release the chains attached from the Ashley era, enabling us to believe we’d finally have some ambitious owners to take us to the next level.
Rumours are that Amanda Staveley would be the figure head of a takeover and backed by £28 billion firm, PCP Capital partners from the Middle East. Articles ran in the Chronicle this week explaining how the Middle East is very competitive regarding football, with the only nation there without a top football club in Europe being Saudi Arabia. It could be that investors there are looking for a new club, apparently we are one of three English clubs being considered, to rival the likes of Manchester City.
If this was to come off, and it’s a big if, what would be the potential impact for NUFC?
NUFC competing for top players again
Investment and finance rules modern football and this is what we are lacking under Ashley. It is almost impossible, Leicester aside, to break into the top 4 without serious financial muscle.
A new owner like PCP would certainly give us that opportunity. It would have to be like Man City, where we build gradually but it would just be so refreshing to see us showing ambition in the transfer market again and have a free spending window similar to that of Everton’s this summer. Arguably, we have not had that since Freddy Shepherd was in charge, with his club record signing of Michael Owen yet to be beaten by Ashley.
Keeping Benitez
The major positive of recent years being a Newcastle fan has been the arrival and work of current manager, Rafa Benitez. Rafa is ambitious and has big plans for Newcastle. He will not be happy battling relegation next season even – he’ll want year on year progression and I imagine that includes getting Newcastle United back into the Champions League. It may sound a million miles away at the moment, but with ambitious new owners, big investment, a top class manager and a city that lives and breathes football, the sky could be the limit.
As a fan, it’s great having a manager of this calibre and expectation, but there will come a time when Ashley has to catch up before Rafa finds a new club who will match his ambition. A new takeover could solve this and keep Rafa at SJP.
Uniting the fans further – turning hope into a reality?
Another major positive has been the unity of the fans under Bentiez. We have a common goal, the atmosphere is far better at games, we sell out games and initiatives like Gallowgate flags have been a fantastic addition to match days. The only thing that could unite the fans further would be confirmation Rafa is staying, all the speculation of him leaving naturally causes unrest and gives the press an angle to publish click bait content about NUFC, usually negative. A takeover would be a game changer as keeping Rafa would allow us to move forward together, with hope for the future.
The latest takeover talk is exciting and one NUFC fans will be keen to learn more about over the coming weeks. As always though, the caveat is that this is Mike Ashley and a spanner in the works is usually not far away. The club has been on the market for a while with no buyers, so his asking price is clearly too high. The new TV deal may have just made us an attractive proposition despite the asking price; and Staveley must have been impressed with the atmosphere and unity on display at the weekend.
Here is hoping for some positive news soon, so we can all get excited about the future again.
What are you talking about man?
I do know about the tax man and tax scams. I have seen them. I don’t just come on here and BS. I have seen a lot of other things outside of NUFC and NUFC sites. And I assume you have as well, although sometimes it doesn’t seem that way.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Settle down, Eric.
Stuart79(Quote)
It’s alreet man. You can go back and talk to Troy.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
So, I was right about:
Rooney
Mr. Roy
Arrogant Alan
The Pickled Walnut with Hair
Schteve
Mick Quinn
Ryder
Paul Merson’s Giant Balloon Heed
Lawro
Everton
Troy Stavers
Lee Clarke
Need I go on…
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Yes you should, Eric…
Eric Sykes(Quote)
I will give myself big pat on the back because I was correct about all of them.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
More you ask?
Brits and Yanks do not understand Australians. They all want to go and travel but are not equipped for it. They go and ***** and moan, they are told they need to see the world but the world really doesn’t need to see them. They are facile, boring and drunk. That’s been my experience anyway.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
**** it. I did meet a nice Aussie in Thailand so my sweeping generalization about them is wrong. It was all of the others before him that I couldn’t stand.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
So if Amanda & co want to buy Liverpool what were they meeting Rafa for ? New Pool manager perhaps ?
Typical of our luck, always was too good to be true.
KIMTOON(Quote)
As for HMRC investigating NUFC dealings , absolutely nothing would surprise me at the level of fiddling the fatman and co could of been up to over the last decade. He is and will be the ruination of NUFC but people will still support him and call him a saviour of the club.
Why did Amanda not go to Liverpool if they wanted to buy them, why watch them at SJP, bit odd and why meet Rafa and Bishop and have that broker guy with them .
KIMTOON(Quote)
So when my daughter moved out of her flat she told the tax man she was getting rent from letting it. A year later she moved back in to the flat, I told her to tell the Tax man so she wouldn’t pay tax on rent she wasn’t getting , she forgot 🙄 Fast forward a year and she gets contacted by a debt agency who want to call to collect £4,000 in unpaid taxes !
She contacts HMRC who say she owes tax on rent for last year PLUS she hasn’t declared her main job !
She explains that she is paid via PAYE and that she is stopped tax each week therefore tax office obviously know about her main job but they insist the onus was on her to tell them about her main job on self assessment form she originally did!
She didn’t get tax letters as they were sent to her ex fellas address and he kindly binned them, because he was being a ****.
She has had to employ an accountant to sort out a payment plan, even though she’s had no rent for over a year since moving back in. The amount owed including a penalty fine is over £4,000 they reckon.
Point of this story is, HMRC are robbing gets who go all out for the honest little man and do deals with the rich robbing bastards in this country Eric.
KIMTOON(Quote)
She’d of been better off not declaring that bloody rent, there’s no point being honest in this country. I told her if she moves out again to keep quiet about the rent.
KIMTOON(Quote)
Seeing there’s not much footy crack at the moment a little storey of the bloody taxman,a friend of mine had racing pigeons from a young lad and did very well with,retiring from the pit at 65 he found it hard to find the money to feed and race them so he would sell six young ones each yr to help him to keep (£200) going,now in his 80s someone reported him to the tax man for un- earned income, the tax came to see him and gave him a bill for £20.000 told him “he” had to prove he did not make that much within two months his Mrs died from worry he said,two months later he died,luckily they had no children for the tax man to chase,I hate the bloody jobs worth swines
Icedog(Quote)
That’s what I said that on here mate the day the storey came out (great minds lol)
Icedog(Quote)
Gotta love the press.. wind the geordie fans up with a potential take over and then drag them through the mill with stories that the take over is now in doubt. . Its almost a good way to sell papers and create online click bait.
Sources close to me say that most of this is probably bullshit. .
Aussie(Quote)
Ice: not much Football craic!!!! it is international week. Where football blogs go to die.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Brett Lee is my hero by the way. My sweeping statements about Aussies I have met are totally mitigated by Brett bowling full tilt at Piers Morgan.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Brett Lee for Prime Minister:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ePx61TkXKY
Eric Sykes(Quote)
That’s awful but sadly very believable in my experience.
KIMTOON(Quote)
That is terrible.
My Dad delivered bread and cakes for Greggs, in the green Greggs van with the mirror image logo. At the end of the day there would be stuff left over. His last stop was our house and he would leave the pies and tarts that would be thrown out and we would have some but we also gave some to pensioners nearby. Somebody reported him to Greggs and he was sacked.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
I was like 12 or something and remember taking a couple of pasties to Belle up the street who was about 75 and widowed. Her husband had spent his life down the pit and died in his 60s.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Eric, for every decent human being there seems to be two ****s, wish it were the other way round.
What was the point in reporting your dad for that, really how pathetic can folk be.
KIMTOON(Quote)
Well while there’s conspiracy theories getting thrown round I may as well throw my own in.
Is it just me that finds it coincidental that the other club they are supposedly interested in buying just happens to be Liverpool – the team we were playing the day Amanda was at our game ?.
How many times has she been spotted at Anfield?! ?
Could it be that it is being said they are looking at Liverpool to try and combat any stupid antics from Ashley – this is what we’ll pay, don’t **** about or we’ll buy someone else.
They can buy NUFC for £300m (or round about), or Liverpool at a reported £1b – it’s a different price bracket and a totally different prospect in terms of Liverpool already have that global brand, they have that stage in European football – if that’s the type of team they want to buy NOW, then why speak to a club that have just regained PL status.
They may or may not buy NUFC – I think that will largely depend on Ashley’s stubbornness. But I am confident they won’t be buying LFC.
Sharpy17(Quote)
Apparently they haven’t signed the nondisclosure agreement either while three other potential buyers have and are looking at the books already (due diligence). So it looks like Ashley’s looking to sell which is a start, but then the rumour comes up it’s because he doesn’t want to spend on January signings and the buyers want in before the new TV deal. To further muddy the waters the rumour now flying is that HMRC is now looking into all deals since Ashley bought, though to be in the region of £560m.
georgio(Quote)
Wouldn’t surprise me, Sharpy.
The reality is that nobody in the press knows anything. The only people who know anything will be Justin Barnes, Mike Ashley and any potential buyers. The rest, well it’s just journos being fed info from people who don’t really know. This isn’t a transfer story where people at the club might know what’s happening.
Stuart79(Quote)
I could tell so many stories about Aussies travelling. What wankers.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
funniest one was that a friend of mine brought a paranoid sheep farmer back from London ( he was Oz). He overstayed his visa and she was so desperate to get him back to Oz that she bought the two of them a ticket back. They touched down and she said “see ya” and went back to the airport knowing he would not be able to get back into the USA with an expired visa.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
He was literally paranoid and off his meds.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
I have many more stories of Aussies on their travel but I will spare you.
Luckily, they don’t seem to make it to Chicago.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
just as well with the welcome you’d give em 😆
KIMTOON(Quote)
Well England are looking **** again, don’t know why I bother watching tbh.
KIMTOON(Quote)
Seriously, Bruce and Sheila should stay at home.
Another one. I went on a 3 week tour of Egypt and Bruce and Sheila tried to get the guide sacked. No reason, apart from moaning about nothing. I had to get the other trip takers to write a letter to the tour organisers to refute what these moaners were saying.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
🙂
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Where is Lithuania? Is it close to dead rubber? Or Deli Alli?
Eric Sykes(Quote)
I am watching it now. And Lithuania don’t appear to be very good.
Are they the ones that had statues of Lenin and put them on a football pitch instead of real players?
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Half time. And that was yet another 45 minutes of dirge. May as well have had a cup of coffee with AMF and BrisV.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Death by football.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Spurs are quite a good team. What happens when they start to play for England?
Eric Sykes(Quote)
75 minutes. WTF.
I have another stool to paint and can watch it dry.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
How on earth Shelvey can’t get in this **** poor England squad is beyond me!
Stuart79(Quote)
I mean, really. Jese Lindgard.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Lingard cannot even start for Man U and gets in the England team!!!!
And keiran Tripier didn’t start for Spurs until about 2 games ago.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Sturridge!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Eric Sykes(Quote)
85 minutes and this has been utter sh!te.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
3 million quid for Southgate!!! I telt ye. He is *****. Playing Mackems. ***** Mackems anaal.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
he gets a 200k bonus for qualifying!!!!!! Can I get a 200k bonus for walking my dog and taking the cat litter out???
Eric Sykes(Quote)
At least the Jocks are out.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
I don’t even have a cat, but can I still have the 200k?
Eric Sykes(Quote)
I’m so pleased we’ve had a 2 week International break so we could witness those 2 England performances like.
What an absolute shower of *****. I’m so bored of pundits making excuses for England & the manager.
One thing stood out for me tonight though – John Stones £50m. Michael Keane £30m plus. Harry Maguire £16m (and looked like a real cart horse by the way!!). – how much does that put Lascelles & Clarke at?!?!?!!!
Sharpy17(Quote)
Jordan Henderson passes a ball backwards or sideways – passes my 8yr old son could make with his school shoes on – then struts round that midfield like he’s some kind of world beater. He offers absolute nothing to that team imo.
Sharpy17(Quote)
MAguire I wouldn’t give sixteen quid for him Henderson is not a international saying that only Kane would qualify
Icedog(Quote)
I will credit Southgate for trying a new formation though. It was definitely a fixture to try something new. A 3 at the back formation is worth looking at with a lot of PL sides playing that way, so why not.
But players like Ali are letting him down imo. The finger gesture meant he missed the first game – he should have come in tonight and destroyed these minnows, but he done nowt. I fear Southgate is too soft and hasn’t got it in him to challenge under performers.
Sharpy17(Quote)
Ice – I know it shouldn’t bother me, but I can’t believe Harry Maguire is now the owner of an England cap. We have so many CBs ahead of him, and I don’t see what he’s done at Leicester to deserve the call up never mind the cap personally.
The same goes for Harry Winks actually. He’s only played something like 4 senior games for Spurs – what has he proved to get that call up and cap?!.
Sharpy17(Quote)
I agree that trying different formations is good but if you’re going to do that, surely it makes sense to use the best players? After all, aren’t they the ones who will be playing in the WC?
Stuart79(Quote)
What a pile of **** that match was … really Dire! Lithuania are 120 in the world, England are 15… and we can only manage a 1-0 win and that was a penalty. ???☹️☹️☹️
Dubai Toon(Quote)
Well I ended up cleaning up a pile of Lewis’s puke and on balance it was better use of my time than watching that shower.
Only one player has real class and that’s kane imo, rest of them are useless.
KIMTOON(Quote)
Can’t believe there’s another break in November as well, it’s too soon and bloody pointless.
KIMTOON(Quote)
Imo at this stage of the game you should know 90% of your team and as Stu says you should be working on tactics A /B day in day out until you know them in your sleep as Rafa seems to,try new players by all means but in the formation your trying to work on
Icedog(Quote)
Eric, just watching a documentary about Huntington in West Virginia, it’s called ****** town as one in four adults are addicted to ****** . Population 49,000 and 11,000 od’s in the last year alone !
Mental 😯
KIMTOON(Quote)
Kimtoon: never been.
I have lived in Chicago for 27 years and have never seen so much as a bar fight. The cops must sanction it off on the South side with the gangs and the guns. Seriously, I have never even seen a fight in a pub.
I went back to London about 6 years ago and saw 2 fight in a bar by Victoria in about an hour. And that is supposedly being gentrified.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
* section
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Will they build it up so that they have the pundits w@nk about us winning the World Cup? It is 8 months away and they can have a giant set and have shows produced from the England training complex with interviews with Mackem Henderson saying he will stay strong and carry on.
And then forget that **** show they just put on against Slovenia and Lithuania. Yes. Slovenia and Lithuania.
Southgate should be sacked. He is a younger and ******* version of Mr. Roy.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
You know the script. They will have all of the ex-player punditocracy over there cheerleading for their new mates and watching as they fail, miserably.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Eric, they got one in 10 babies born into withdrawal, that’s so sad.
Just wondered if you’d heard of it at all really. Guess that’s part of trumps America they don’t talk about.
It’s on bbc 2 now.
KIMTOON(Quote)
and making excuse after excuse.
We could have double Redknapps and a Pardew. A Merse, a Sourness and a miserable aggressive Keane.
How about a double Neville? Maybe a whole team of ex-****:
Henry
Tony Adams
Merse
Ian Wright
Lee Dixon
Martin Keown
Ray Parlour
Alan Smith
I swear they breed faster than ex-Liverpool pundits…
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Do they have a big enough couch to fit all of the ex- Man U, Liverpool and **** pundits on?
Eric Sykes(Quote)
And Man U:
Neville
Neville
And their Dad who was actually Neville Neville. Really, he was.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
I missed Charlie Nicholas and probably quite a few more.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
And Liverpool, I apologize if I miss any:
Steve Nichol (he is on over here on ESPN)
Michael Owen
Emlyn Hughes (Question of Sport)
Jamie (Screetch) Carragher
Phil Tommo Thompso
Lawro
Steve McMananamanamanamanan
Jan Molby
Ian Rush
John Barnes
Stevie G
Kenny D
Graeme Sourness
Stan Collymore
Alan Hansen
Ian St John
Deitmar Hamann
Did I miss any?
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Yes, Gary and Phil Neville’s dad is called Neville Neville. I am not making this up!
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Well, my real name is not Eric Sykes. It is Graeme Stewart. I think I should change it to Neville Neville because the people over here keep calling me Stewart. Nah, I have a first name and a last name but they have a mental block.
Stewart Stewart 🙂 Mam, why didn’t you call me Stewart Stewart?
Eric Sykes(Quote)
I actually find it quite funny on here that everybody know who is being referenced when someone says Jabba, Fatty, Fat Man etc.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
I am trying to think of a name to call the “LEGEND” Mick Quinn. Giant headed fat scouse horse worrier is too long winded. C@NT?
Eric Sykes(Quote)
And a bit too close to Paul Merson’s Giant Balloon Head, although they do share similar features in the cranial department.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Hroucho(Quote)