Richard Masters has disclosed details of meetings that took place between the Premier League and the government over the Newcastle United takeover.
As per The Chronicle, the Foreign Office and the top flight held two meetings last year to discuss the proposed £300m deal between Mike Ashley and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) group.
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MP for Gateshead Ian Mearns had previously written to the chief executive of the PL to demand that the details of those meetings were to be shared with the general public.
Masters has since written back to Mearns to disclose those details, saying:
“These were solely to discuss the process by which an announcement on the prospective takeover of Newcastle United FC would have been communicated.
“The meetings provided the FCDO with an understanding of how any decision would be announced, so to assist the FCDO to inform their stakeholders in the region.
“The meetings were focused on the process and timing of the communication of a decision on the prospective takeover.
“All parties were clear that the decision on any prospective takeover was a matter solely for the Premier League.”
Where is the Newcastle takeover heading?
With the final decision on the prospective bid solely lying in the hands of the league as Masters has pointed out, it is clear that some things still need to be ironed out before the takeover can get back on track.
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The KSA’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) would need to come back to the table first of all, with the Premier League’s Owners’ and Directors’ Test (ODT) questioning as to whether them and the Saudi state are separate entities.
There is also the piracy issue still looming, with the relationship between the Kingdom and the top flight stretched over the illegal streaming of games.
Nonetheless, at least the details of those meetings have now been disclosed by Masters for the public to see – fans have been crying out for some transparency from those involved in the takeover’s failure so far.
In other news, find out what big claim Guillem Balague has dropped on Rafa Benitez here!
