Newcastle United have a list of four managers they want to replace Steve Bruce should the club finalise their takeover by a Saudi Arabian investment group.
The Magpies are in the process of being overtaken by the group, who would instantly transform the club into the richest, at least relating to owners, in the league if they are successful.
Their plan, according to Sport via Guillem Balagué, is to turn them into another Manchester City, although financial limitations from Financial Fair Play mean it will be a slower process than the one they’ve enjoyed at the Etihad.
Nonetheless, there is a strategy in place for the club to build a ‘spectacular infrastructure’ to improve both the club and the city.
The first step is finding a more high-profile name as manager, and according to the newspaper, there are four on the list; Mauricio Pochettino, Rafa Benítez, Massimilano Allegri and Julian Nagelsmann.
Pochettino is ‘the first on the list’, with him available on a free after leaving Tottenham earlier this season with the others presumably to be targeted if they can’t get the Argentine.
Benítez is a sensible inclusion given his previous association with the club and the widespread disapproval of his departure, with it likely the new owners are looking at him as an attempt to win approval from the fanbase early on.
Balagué offers nothing more than that the Magpies are interested in all four, which would suggest nothing is going on with any of them at this moment in time.
He has a close relationship with Pochettino and would be one of the first to report if there was a significant update, so the fact he hasn’t means Newcastle fans may be waiting a while before seeing their dream appointment in the dugout.
