Mark Douglas has revealed some of his inside information on the Kingdom of Saudi Arabian (KSA) crown prince Mohammed bin Salman (MbS) and his country’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) amid the proposed takeover of Newcastle United.
The Chronicle journalist was responding to a fan on Twitter asking if the prospective £300m deal is dead for both MbS and PIF, to which Douglas replied:
“No: They’re still keen. The party that really matters is the Premier League”.
No: they're still keen. The party that really matters in the @premierleague.
— Mark Douglas (@MsiDouglas) August 3, 2020
Indeed, MbS and PIF are set to hold a majority share of 80% of the Tyneside club if their bid was to be accepted by the Premier League and its chief executive Richard Masters, but the Saudi-led group cut the wire on their own deal as they felt that England’s highest division and its CEO were simply taking too long to make their final decision.
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With the 2020/21 season fast approaching, in addition to the fact that the summer transfer window has officially opened, perhaps the Saudi’s abandonment of the proposed takeover is unsurprising given the growing uncertainty that was swarming around St. James’ Park.
However, businesswoman and head of PCP Capital Partners Amanda Staveley has claimed that ‘we will not give up’ with regards to getting the takeover over the line; and the billionaire Reuben brothers, who are originally from India but now based in London, have also expressed their desire to get the deal done through a representative of their company to Sky Sports.
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If MbS and PIF are also keen to get their bid approved as Douglas says, then perhaps more negotiations could be had with the Premier League in order for them to finally give it the green light.
Geordies, do you still believe the takeover can be done? Comment below with your views!
