On Thursday evening, it was announced that the 14-year tenure of Mike Ashley as the owner of Newcastle United had finally come to an end, as the Magpies were officially acquired by a Saudi Arabian-backed consortium.
The announcement led to hordes of euphoric supporters celebrating outside St. James’ Park, whilst the takeover was also praised by Newcastle United legend Alan Shearer - who referred to Thursday’s events as a “special day” for the club’s fans.
Owing to the sheer wealth of the Magpies’ new owners, similarities between Thursday’s takeover of Newcastle United and Sheikh Mansour’s 2008 takeover of Manchester City have been noted by many football fans, and interestingly, one of the club’s new co-owners has also made similar comparisons.
As per an exclusive interview with the Mail, Amanda Staveley has expressed ambitions for the Magpies to emulate the recent success of Manchester City.
Following the long-awaited takeover, Newcastle now have wealthiest owners in the game, and when commenting on her ambition for the club, co-owner Staveley stated, “We have the same ambitions as Manchester City and PSG in terms of trophies, absolutely, but that will take time.”
She added, “Do we want to win the Premier League within five to 10 years? Yes. This takeover is hugely transformative. We want to see trophies. But trophies need investment, time, patience and teamwork.”
Following Sheikh Mansour’s acquisition of City in 2008, the club were able to capture the Premier League title just three years and nine months following the takeover – indicating that Amanda Staveley’s ambition to see Newcastle lift the Premier League “within five to 10 years” is certainly a possibility.
The comparisons between the takeovers of Newcastle and Manchester City are warranted owing to the immense wealth of their owners, and the similarities are there.
However, only time will tell whether Newcastle United can emulate the recent success of Manchester City.
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