Ashley puts Toon up for £380m sale

MIKE ASHLEY wants to sell Newcastle by Christmas – to free up transfer funds for manager Rafa Benitez. The Sports Direct tycoon announced last night the club was up for sale for £380million. Ashley (above) wants out before the January window – so investment can “take Newcastle to the next level”. Talks have been going on behind the scenes about a sale with several interested parties looking through the books. Financier Amanda Staveley, whose PCP Capital Partners has £28bn under its control, was at St James’ Park last month for the 2-1 win over Stoke and informally met senior club figures, including Benitez. More talks are planned with Staveley and others who have signed “no disclosure agreements”. Ashley has made Newcastle profitable after he held back on big transfer investment. The tycoon first put the club up for sale in 2008 but failed several times to find a buyer. He bought the Magpies for £133m and has £129m loaned to the club interest free. A sale price of £380m would net a near £120m profit, helped by the soaring value of TV deals. Ashley says they can pay his price in stages, allowing more to be spent on players. Andrew Henderson, a lawyer brokering the deal, said: “Our intentions are to see if the club can be brought forward into new ownership by Christmas. “Assuming an appropriate person can be found to take the club forward, on exactly how payments are structured, there is a genuine desire from our point of view to ensure the club is put in the best possible position.”