What do Newcastle United and your aunt who just won £400 on a scratch card have in common?
They’re both set to come into a bit of money, and will probably spend it recklessly.
If you haven’t heard, the Magpies – pending Premier League clearance – are about to be released from the clutches of Mike Ashley, and taken over controversially by the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund. Though there are still some hurdles to overcome…
The Newcastle United takeover saga just keeps rumbling on…
— 90min (@90min_Football) May 30, 2020
Their prospective new owners are just a little bit ambitious. However, while they have been linked with Gareth Bale and Philippe Coutinho among an extensive list of unlikely transfer targets, there have been some dissenting voices who have suggested they will be unable to spend so lucratively while keeping within FIFA’s notorious Financial Fair Play regulations.
The Shields Gazette believe they have debunked any such claims, however, as university lecturer and Price of Football author Kieran Maguire – not an expert, according to his Twitter bio – says their thrifty spending in previous windows means they have a cushion to go big under their potential new leaders.
“I’ve crunched the numbers and NUFC have an FFP profit of around £82m over the past two seasons to the end of 2018/19. The allowable loss is £105million over a three-year period,” Maguire is quoted as saying.
“Assuming the new owners sign players on four-year deals, they could spend anywhere between £150-200m in one window or a season and still stay within the Premier League limit.
?️ “For the integrity of the competition, I think it was always important for us to try and get the season done.”
Watch our interview with @IsaacHayden65, brought to you in association with @fun88eng, on NUFC TV now: https://t.co/zafsIZbYZv#BackToBusiness #NUFC pic.twitter.com/t5QSINasws
— Newcastle United FC (@NUFC) May 30, 2020
“There is little love towards Mike Ashley – and rightly so – but he’s leaving a financial legacy that is attractive to any rich successor.”
Wouldn’t it just be ironic if the stingy spending of Ashley – so fervently criticised by the Magpies fanbase – ended up being the very thing that facilitates the signing of Ousmane Dembele or something equally stupid?
It probably won’t be, but it’s worth a thought.
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