New Owner

[occult]

Assuming that Amanda Staveley in the guise of her business becomes the new owner of NUFC her priority will be, I assume, to preserve the value of her investment which means staying in the PL. I assume too that she'll provide Rafa with funds to buy new players for that purpose.

But here's the rub. I think she'll also give him a fixed number of games to turn results round, a sort of probationary period. Those who post on this board may regard Rafa as some sort of idol and hero-worship him but she's a hard headed, shrewd businesswoman and whilst she'll hope he'll succeed ( don't we all because if he succeeds NUFC succeeds ) she'll focus exclusively on results and not on past history, under-investment, what happened in the 2016 or 2017 transfer windows etc. Her view of him, I would guess, would be similar to mine: he's a man doing a job not some sort of God who's descended from heaven to St James' Park. If results don't improve, then whether it's fair or not, Rafa will suffer the same fate as other managers who get bad results. If this happens, all those who wanted a new owner -and don't we all -will be torn because the new owner will have sacked their hero.

No doubt this post will provoke lengthy screeds about what has happened in the past but to a great extent the past is now irrelevant. Analysing it doesn't solve the problem of Dec 2017. There'll be many too who'll say we couldn't get a better manager. My guess is that a new owner will reason that results coudn't get any worse under a new manager but there is a prospect of them improving. For instance, if the position at the time is 1 point from, say, 39, then he'll go.

I do hope he can turn around the results but for his fans get ready for the emotional trauma if he can't.

[toonlegend]

you forgot one thing though, assuming amanda will be the new boss, and other reports are true too.

Amanda and co only want rafa there. - rafa was instrumental (at least partly) in bringing amanda and her co horts to nufc
and apparently would think again about buying if he wasn't there

[kingstonbob]

It ain't going to provoke anything more than I couldn't give a flying one what the miserable cnuts think from me tbh.

[pboromag]

what a load of *******s about thinking twice if rafa wasnt there

would you buy a company for 300 mill with an expected investment of a further 300 mill plus and only do so if one person stays

[Jammy89]

Well if it was a new and upcoming social media site and Zuckerberg was in charge but then he left. . . I might reconsider it and look at other sites.

If it was a physics/astrophysics company and they had Stephen Hawking there and then he left. . . . I might reconsider.

[toonlegend]

what a load of *******s about thinking twice if rafa wasnt there

would you buy a company for 300 mill with an expected investment of a further 300 mill plus and only do so if one person stays

well whether its true or not I have no idea, but it is widely believed to be so

see quote below

"Rafa Benitez is key to the Newcastle United takeover, according to fresh weekend claims about the St James’ Park takeover.

Benitez has overseen a ruinous run of eight defeats in nine games but retains the support of the overwhelming majority of the supporters – as well as prospective owners PCP Capital Partners, with the group spearheaded by Amanda Staveley having made the original connection largely on the back of the Spaniard’s presence at Newcastle.

And a report in the Sunday Times claims if Ashley sacked Benitez – a hugely unlikely twist in the takeover scenario given the whopping pay-out that would be due to him in that eventuality – the mooted £250million takeover would be off.

It’s understood that a deal is edging closer but it’s claim that briefings and counter-briefings over the last two weeks are muddying the waters of a deal that has been hugely complicated by two issues: United’s perilous position in the Premier League and the approaching January transfer window, which was always going to have a part to play in the negotiations."

and

It’s a fact that Staveley’s group were attracted to the club by Benitez’s presence. People close to the manager were spotted with Staveley after the game and she dined with some of his guests in Newcastle after the Liverpool game, which was when she definitively decided to switch her attention from a mooted takeover at her club Liverpool to United.

According to a report in the Financial Times on Friday, PCP Capital Partners have carried out analysis that suggested the club have a "65% chance" of relegation this season. Staveley knows a substantial spend is required even after paying Ashley's asking price.

She is understood to be fully supportive of the sort of transformation of the club that Benitez believes is necessary to restore their Premier League credibility. This would include investment in infrastructure, the training ground, Academy and – most importantly – the squad itself.

Although the ex-Liverpool boss’ record this season is poor, he agreed to stay on the basis that the club were prepared to buy into this vision. Since last January the goalposts have moved, with successive frustration in the transfer window and no significant investment in facilities. Without the support of the fans and his own feeling that he owed them and the players he signed last summer another season as manager, Benitez would likely have left in the close season – when he had interest from clubs both in England and abroad.

Instead he stayed, fully aware of the size of the task facing him and his squad. Now the takeover is the only thing convincing him and his associates that the club can achieve what they thought was possible – even on Ashley’s watch – back in May.

It is quite incredible that the situation has reached this impasse given the momentum that Newcastle had after clinching the Championship title in May.

Since then the positivity has drained away and a second relegation in three seasons is now a distinct possibility after a run of games that has supported Benitez’s summer assertion that Newcastle had not done enough – while also undermining the certainty in the manager. The first anti-Ashley chants for some time were heard in the away end at the Emirates.

[pboromag]

well whether its true or not I have no idea, but it is widely believed to be so

see quote below

"Rafa Benitez is key to the Newcastle United takeover, according to fresh weekend claims about the St James’ Park takeover.

Benitez has overseen a ruinous run of eight defeats in nine games but retains the support of the overwhelming majority of the supporters – as well as prospective owners PCP Capital Partners, with the group spearheaded by Amanda Staveley having made the original connection largely on the back of the Spaniard’s presence at Newcastle.

And a report in the Sunday Times claims if Ashley sacked Benitez – a hugely unlikely twist in the takeover scenario given the whopping pay-out that would be due to him in that eventuality – the mooted £250million takeover would be off.

It’s understood that a deal is edging closer but it’s claim that briefings and counter-briefings over the last two weeks are muddying the waters of a deal that has been hugely complicated by two issues: United’s perilous position in the Premier League and the approaching January transfer window, which was always going to have a part to play in the negotiations."

and

It’s a fact that Staveley’s group were attracted to the club by Benitez’s presence. People close to the manager were spotted with Staveley after the game and she dined with some of his guests in Newcastle after the Liverpool game, which was when she definitively decided to switch her attention from a mooted takeover at her club Liverpool to United.

According to a report in the Financial Times on Friday, PCP Capital Partners have carried out analysis that suggested the club have a "65% chance" of relegation this season. Staveley knows a substantial spend is required even after paying Ashley's asking price.

She is understood to be fully supportive of the sort of transformation of the club that Benitez believes is necessary to restore their Premier League credibility. This would include investment in infrastructure, the training ground, Academy and – most importantly – the squad itself.

Although the ex-Liverpool boss’ record this season is poor, he agreed to stay on the basis that the club were prepared to buy into this vision. Since last January the goalposts have moved, with successive frustration in the transfer window and no significant investment in facilities. Without the support of the fans and his own feeling that he owed them and the players he signed last summer another season as manager, Benitez would likely have left in the close season – when he had interest from clubs both in England and abroad.

Instead he stayed, fully aware of the size of the task facing him and his squad. Now the takeover is the only thing convincing him and his associates that the club can achieve what they thought was possible – even on Ashley’s watch – back in May.

It is quite incredible that the situation has reached this impasse given the momentum that Newcastle had after clinching the Championship title in May.

Since then the positivity has drained away and a second relegation in three seasons is now a distinct possibility after a run of games that has supported Benitez’s summer assertion that Newcastle had not done enough – while also undermining the certainty in the manager. The first anti-Ashley chants for some time were heard in the away end at the Emirates.

no way aould someone looking at a long term investment of a billion pounds make that decision on one person .

their arses will be twaeking at where he is currently in the prem

and who has got us there

would you from what we have seen this season the miserable way we played in the fizzy with a very expensive squad (net spend or not)and the fat he couldnt turn us around when we went down invest a billion pounds in that person

they will see that he is a machine
and can be replaced at relatively little cost an in fact they would have a huge selection of such machines

i seriously feel our team and our manager are the ones holding up the sale

its current position with no relegation clause is a serious risk

[occult]

This is a reply to Toonlegend's post. I agree with him that the reported position of Amanda Staveley is as he reports i.e. that Rafa is crucial to her plans and part of the attraction that NUFC holds for her. Yet she is also worried that we will be relegated. She must have factored into this the knowledge that Rafa will be manager this season and, if she buys the club in time, will have new players. So on the face of it she does not feel confident that Rafa will keep the club up. And she must realise that if we are relegated Rafa is unlikely to be manager next season. So how central is Rafa to her?

[ex_pat_magpie]

This is a reply to Toonlegend's post. I agree with him that the reported position of Amanda Staveley is as he reports i.e. that Rafa is crucial to her plans and part of the attraction that NUFC holds for her. Yet she is also worried that we will be relegated. She must have factored into this the knowledge that Rafa will be manager this season and, if she buys the club in time, will have new players. So on the face of it she does not feel confident that Rafa will keep the club up. And she must realise that if we are relegated Rafa is unlikely to be manager next season. So how central is Rafa to her?

No one will know the answer to that apart from Rafa and Stavely.