Following the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund’s decision to purchase Newcastle United, every man and his dog has been asked about their thoughts on the takeover.
Mike Ashley’s tenure was widely looked at as a bad one, while the new owners bring their own problems, and many personalities in and outside of football have all been required to give their two cents on the matter, with Louis Saha being no different.
Having a chat with AS on Thursday as he is an ambassador for SIGA, ‘a platform that safeguards the integrity of sport and promote global leadership, good governances and independent, neutral and universal standards’, the former Manchester United forward was asked about Newcastle.
He said: “It’s increasingly normal for money to come from outside of football. From the 90s onwards, millionaires began to arrive at clubs. They are different markets and have their peculiarities.
“Other football cultures, such as Asia, must be respected. At the amateur level, there is no doubt that any fan wants a millionaire to come to his team and buy the best players. That’s clear”.
That last line is very much the feeling that went around Newcastle when the takeover was complete, but we are yet to see any real movement on that front from the Magpies.
Part of that comes from their current inability to find (or lure) the right man to replace Steve Bruce, having sacked their manager a few weeks ago without a replacement already lined up.
Many have been linked, but few have come close, with the likes of Paulo Fonseca and Eddie Howe currently said to be waiting in the wings following Unai Emery’s decision to snub a move to St James’ Park.
