Liam Kennedy has dropped a definitive answer on what relegation would mean for the potential takeover of Newcastle United involving Mike Ashley.
Writing in his latest piece for The Shields Gazette, the football journalist has claimed that potentially being relegated from the Premier League down to the EFL Championship at the end of the 2020/21 term is 'massive' and that the proposed deal between Ashley and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) group 'dies with relegation'.
He added that 'things become too complicated' if the St. James' Park faithful were to find themselves facing the drop, and he does not think that Ashley would sell the North East club at a Championship price.
Kennedy also believes that the potential buyers would not want to pay a premium sum if the Tyneside club were in a lower division, meaning that there would be 'at least another season, if not more' of Ashley being in charge.
Newcastle relegation nightmare
It is very understandable that Ashley may not want to sell at a lower price and the potential buyers may not want to invest in a Championship club, meaning that avoiding the dreaded drop becomes essential for Steve Bruce's team.
In a weird way, with many expecting Bruce to be axed if new owners come in, the former Aston Villa boss is almost fighting for the right to be replaced by keeping his side up.
An encouraging 2-1 away win and performance against Burnley last weekend should give members of the Toon Army a lot of hope, but NUFC need to replicate that form going into the last few games of the campaign, with the clash against Fulham of course the most crucial fixture on the list.