Benitez tops Staveley’s wish list amid takeover talks – reports
The Saudi Arabian-led consortium in talks over a £340million Newcastle United takeover have reportedly lined up their first “sensational” target – Rafa Benitez.
The Sun claim that Benitez is wanted by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who is backing Amanda Staveley’s latest takeover bid.
Benitez left the club last summer after failing to agree a new contract with Mike
Ashley, Newcastle United’s owner. The 59-year-old joined Chinese side Dalian Yifang.
Benitez – who was succeeded by Steve Bruce in the managerial hotseat at St James’s Park – remains a popular figure on Tyneside, having guided the club to the Championship title in 2017 and led the team to 10th and 13th-placed finishes in the Premier League.
Leaks have suggested that Staveley’s bid is at an “advanced” stage. However, sources close to the deal have urged caution.
Ashley is also understood to be unhappy that the bid has been made public. Speaking last summer, Ashley said: “The reality is with these deals that once it gets out, if it's not done, it's probably not going to get done.”
Meanwhile, former Newcastle chairman Chris Mort
– who worked on Ashley’s takeover in 2007 – is said to be leading the takeover talks on behalf of Staveley.
Mort – who worked on Ashley’s takeover in 2007 and was briefly chairman of the club – is “spearheading” Staveley’s £340million bid, according to The Athletic.
The lawyer, a partner at Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, has been in discussions to Justin Barnes, Ashley’s close associate, for months.
Staveley’s consortium is backed by Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund. The financier failed in previous takeover bid.
Valentino Lazaro wants to return to Inter Milan when his loan expires, according to his agent.
Lazaro last week joined Newcastle United on a halfseason loan, and the Serie A club confirmed that there was an “option” to make the move permanent.
However, Max Hagmayr, Lazaro’s agent, has revealed that Lazaro’s “first choice” is an end-of-season return to Italy.
Speaking to FCInterNews, Hagmayr said: “The player’s first choice is to go back to Inter. With more time available, he wants to demonstrate that he can help the Nerazzurri club to win the Scudetto.”