Ashley blast at PL chief as takeover fails
NOW NEWCASTLE OWNER CONSIDERS LEGAL ACTION
NEWCASTLE owner Mike Ashley has accused Premier League chief Richard Masters of not acting ‘appropriately’ after the club confirmed the Saudi-led takeover had been rejected — and he is considering legal action.
The £300million deal collapsed in July when the consortium — including Amanda Staveley and the Reuben brothers — withdrew from the process, claiming they had grown frustrated with the League’s refusal to accept that the buyers and the Saudi state were separate entities.
Ashley is furious and last night released an explosive statement.
Sportsmail understands Ashley has been told there is now a strong case for legal action.
The statement read: ‘Newcastle United can confirm that the Premier League has rejected a takeover bid made by PCP Capital Partners, the Reuben Brothers and the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia (PIF) based on its Owners and Directors test.
‘This conclusion has been reached despite the club providing the Premier League with overwhelming evidence and legal opinions that PIF is independent and autonomous of the Saudi Arabian government.
‘The club and its owners do not accept that Premier League chief executive Richard Masters and the Premier League have acted appropriately in relation to this matter and will be considering all relevant options available.
‘Mike Ashley understands fans’ frustrations and would like to reassure them that he has been fully committed to ensuring this takeover reached completion as he felt it was in the best interests of the club. Mike continues to be fully supportive to Steve Bruce, the players and all the staff and wishes them well for the season.’
Meanwhile, one of Newcastle’s new boys, Ryan Fraser, says Bournemouth probably would have avoided relegation had he played during the final weeks of the season — but has defended his decision to reject a short-term deal.
The 26-year-old Scotland winger, who joined on a free transfer this week, left Bournemouth in June and did not feature in any of their nine matches after the restart as the club were relegated by one point.
‘My contract was done so it’s not like I refused to play,’ he said. ‘If the virus didn’t come, I would have played every game under my contract. For me, at my age, knowing that this club wanted me, it was just a decision I had to make.
‘I got battered for it, but I need to look after myself. I didn’t want them to go down. With me playing, without being big-headed, I would have helped massively. I was gutted. With coming from League One to the Premier League, it was never how I wanted to end it.
‘Two weeks ago I met (former Bournemouth boss) Eddie Howe in a coffee shop and spoke to him for about an hour. There are no hard feelings with me and the club. It’s obviously the fans who wanted me to play.’
Now Fraser is concentrating on Newcastle. ‘Top ten, we can get there,’ he said. ‘There’s no reason why not, with the players and the manager we’ve got.’