PREMIER LEAGUE I have NOT got £200m to give Rafa, says Ashley @CraigHope_DM
NEWCASTLE owner Mike Ashley says he cannot afford to give Rafa Benitez the transfer funds he wants and insists the manager must work with the money the club generate.
There is tension behind the scenes at St James’ Park on the eve of the new season. Benitez is unhappy about the club’s transfer business, and has admitted he is now targeting players he does not ‘necessarily want’. Newcastle have spent £30million on five players and Benitez recently called on Ashley to ‘keep his word’ on the promise of investment.
But the Sports Direct tycoon has hit back by revealing he ‘cannot and will not’ attempt to compete with the division’s richer clubs.
‘ It ( the transfer fund) is not enough. Very simply, it’s not enough. Rafa knows that, it’s not a secret,’ said Ashley. ‘Every penny the club generate, he can have — but it won’t generate enough. It’s Newcastle United, it doesn’t have a £40m stadium naming rights deal.
‘In theory, you could say I’m a billionaire, a multi-billionaire. But in reality my wealth is in Sports Direct shares. They are the same as wallpaper. I don’t have that cash in the bank. So I don’t have that ability to write a cheque for £200m, I don’t have it. I would have to sell the shares to fund that.
‘I’ve got to make it crystal clear — I am nowhere near wealthy enough to compete with the likes of Man City. It’s a wealthy individual taking on what is the equivalent of countries. I cannot and I will not.’
Ashley, meanwhile, says it is Benitez who has the final say on transfers, telling Sky Sports: ‘ Lee Charnley (the managing director) answers to Rafa — not the other way around. Rafa makes all the final decisions on players in and players out, but he has to do it with the money the club have.’
Benitez said yesterday that he is ‘committed’ to Newcastle and will not walk out, but he made no attempt to mask his frustration.
‘I’m not happy, but I know we’re in this position,’ he said. ‘We are progressing with some targets. It’s not the players we want necessarily, it’s the players that we can (target).
‘We are not doing exactly what I was expecting. But I am not expecting any miracles now.’