Newly-enriched Toon’s warning

NEWCASTLE United’s new owners have warned the rest of the Premier League they are here to “create a consistently successful team”, writes Andy Turner.

The Public Investment Fund (PIF), backed by Saudi Arabia, completed its £305 million takeover of the Magpies on Thursday.

Newcastle have immediately soared to top spot on the Premier League’s rich-list, with their new owners even wealthier than Manchester City supremo Sheikh Mansour.

The Magpies’ new owners are reportedly worth £320 billion, making Man City’s £22.9 billion look like small change by comparison, while the net worth of Leicester City owner Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha is reported to be £2.9 billion. The Foxes are 10th in the latest top flight rich list which sees Chelsea third, with Roman Abramovich (£9.6 billion), Arsenal fourth with Stan Kroenke (£6.35 billion) and Midland rivals Aston Villa fifth with Nassef Sawiris (£5.3 billion).

From 2014-15, when City came back into the top flight, to 2018-19, Leicester’s net transfer spend was £194 million, according to football finance blog Swiss Ramble.

Manchester United, in comparison, had spent £590 million for the same period, while their crosstown rivals Manchester City led the way on £639 million.

But there are concerns that Leicester and other Premier League clubs will be blown out of the water by Newcastle’s newfound wealth.

In an open letter handed to our sister title, The Chronicle, Newcastle’s new non-executive chairman, Yasir Al-Rumayyan, has revealed their plans to follow in City’s footsteps and become a superpower.

Part of the letter reads: “I wanted to give you an understanding of what you can expect from us as owners.

“Most importantly, you can expect ambition. Like you, we want to create a consistently successful team.

“We’re here to build long-term success for the club.”