Mandy flies in to splash out on Toon

AMANDA STAVELEY is pressing ahead with her £325million buy-out of Newcastle United – but now has other options on the table.

The high-flying financier set tongues wagging about a potential takeover last weekend and the Tyneside club remains her No.1 target.

But since making a public appearance in the directors’ box at St James’ Park last weekend, parties from rival clubs have been in touch to see what she has to offer.

And, given that the powerful businesswoman does now have a back-up plan, pressure will increase upon Toon owner Mike Ashley to conclude a swift deal.

Armed with a massive monetary arsenal – assets under her disposal are said to be in excess of £28billion – Staveley has been looking to obtain a presence in the Premier League for the past six months.

Brokered

Her employees have looked at the majority of big clubs, including Manchester United, Liverpool, Arsenal and Spurs.

The only two that have been offlimits are Chelsea and Manchester City.

Blues’ boss Roman Abramovich is not planning to sell, while Staveley herself brokered the deal for Sheikh Mansour to move in at the Etihad.

For different reasons – including the maturity of the asset and ease of actually concluding a deal – Staveley’s sights have settled upon Newcastle.

That would be good news for a giant club whose fortunes have ebbed and flowed during the past decade.

However, central to any talks would be the continued presence of current boss Rafael Benitez.

The Toon Army has taken Benitez to their hearts after he refused to walk after demotion to the Championship and brought them back up.

Ashley set an asking price of £380m during the summer but the market has moved upwards since then and it is likely he will be asking a premium – although with Staveley now boasting alternatives he will be careful not to overplay his hand.