SAUDI ARABIAN prince Mohammed bin Salman could switch his attention back to a takeover of Manchester United after his interest in Newcastle cooled, according to reports.
The Arab leader had been eyeing up a £340million move to buy the St James’ Park side, with Mike Ashley seemingly finally on the brink of leaving the club.
Mohammed bin Salman could turn his attention back to Man Utd after his interest in Newcastle reportedly cooledCredit: Getty
But now reports in the North East in the Shields Gazette claim Bin Salman could turn his focus back to a monster £3.5billion deal to buy Man Utd.
Details of the Saudi prince’s plot to buy Newcastle were leaked in January, with talk of a £340m takeover reported in the Wall Street Journal ahead of the club’s FA Cup clash with Oxford.
The report then claimed: “The buyer is the Public Investment Fund, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s key investment tool, together with a group of investors organised by British financier Amanda Staveley.
“A final deal could be days or weeks away, the people said. The tentative deal could still break down.
“The acquisition would be a major coup for Saudi Arabia as it focuses on sports and entertainment as part of Prince Mohammed’s economic reform plans for the kingdom.
“It could also mean a big infusion of capital into Newcastle akin to Abu Dhabi’s 2008 acquisition of Manchester City.
“Since then the city-state has spent over a billion pounds to amass playing talent, renovate the team’s facilities, and turn City into an era-defining team in the English Premier League.”
However, a combination of the leaked report and Staveley’s involvement is said to have frustrated Bin Salman and his team.
The Shields Gazette go as far as saying Staveley has created issues for both the buyer and seller in the whole takeover process.
And the update from Newcastle will be good news for Man Utd fans – with 91 per cent of Red Devils supporters telling a SunSport poll he would be more welcome than current owners, the Glazer family.
Any team that Bin Salman purchases can expect a whole host of stars to follow him with the Saudi royal family’s investment fund worth as much as £1trillion, of which the 34-year-old possesses £3bn.
Mohammad Bin Salman could still reportedly attempt a multi-billion pound takeover of Man United
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
