Football features

AMANDA STAVELEY has led the Saudi Arabia-backed consortium trying to take over Newcastle United since 2017.Finally, the mega-connected businesswoman has been successful – with the £300m Toon takeover now announced.
Businesswoman and former model Amanda Staveley led the Saudi-based takeover of NewcastleCredit: Camera Press
Staveley met Prince Andrew in 2001 and they dated for two yearsCredit: Rex Features
Staveley, herself, and her PCP Capital Partners firm are set to take a 10 per cent stake in the club as part of the deal, and she will take her seat on the board.
But behind-the-scenes, the Yorkshire-born financier, 48, is battling a crippling brain disease that can lead to dementia.
She was diagnosed with Huntington’s disease in 2013, for which there is no cure.
And before she made her foray into the football world, Amanda was courted by ‘Randy Andy’ Prince Andrew.
However, two years later the former blonde model, who stands 6ft tall in heels, turned down his hand in marriage because she didn’t want to become a Royal.
THE MEETING PLACE
In 2000, Staveley launched Q.ton – a health club, gym, restaurant and conference centre in the Cambridge Science Park for £10million.
A year later, Andrew, then a UK trade ambassador, went to the science park with King Abdullah of Jordan, one of its many investors, and met Staveley for the first time.
Immediately besotted by her beauty and intelligence, Andrew took her number and they began dating.
The relationship was beneficial for both parties – Amanda was introduced to Andrew’s contacts book, while he reportedly enjoyed inaugurating her into his inner circle.
According to reports, she called him “Babe”, while he sent her racy jokes in text messages and emails.
Andrew soon became entranced by Staveley reportedly sending her racy text messagesCredit: Camera Press
Andrew loved introducing Staveley to his high-society friendsCredit: Rex Features
Andrew was so entranced by his new love, Staveley was invited to Buckingham Palace and Sandringham, while she also helped decorate his home in Windsor Great Park.
The Queen and Prince Philip were believed to be delighted for Andrew, and gave Staveley their seal of approval.
However, he couldn’t get her down the aisle. In 2003, she politely declined his marriage proposal.
“Andrew’s a lovely man and I still care for him a great deal,” she told the Daily Mail.
“But if I’d married him, my independence would have disappeared.”
HUNTINGTON’S DISEASE
In 2013, Amanda was diagnosed with Huntington’s disease – a degenerative disorder that affects people later in life.
When the cruel illness takes effect, sufferers’ brain functions begin to slowly decline and mood swings, memory loss, as well as involuntary body movements are just some of the symptoms she could face.
She was told by doctors that the disease is dormant, but could be triggered through stress and pressure at work.
Amanda discovered she had inherited the Huntington’s gene from her mum Lyne – a former champion show-jumper – when she was tested before starting her own family at 37.
In 2011, Staveley married Iranian businessman Mehrdad GhodoussiCredit: Robert Shack Photography
Staveley suffers from Huntington’s diseaseCredit: Rex Features
She credits husband Ghodoussi for being patient with herCredit: Avalon.red. All rights reserved.
“The stress brings on the onset of the disease, and the disease is fatal,” she revealed to the Mail on Sunday.
And she is the first to admit it has made her difficult for her husband, Mehrdad Ghodoussi, who she married in 2011.
“I have the most incredibly patient and loving husband. I didn’t want to get married when I found out about the disease – but he said he didn’t care, and that we would find the best medical care available.”
Although, rather strangely, Huntington’s made Amanda better with numbers when she was a City dealmaker with Barclays bank.

“It’s actually very useful because I’ve never needed a calculator,” she said.
“The Barclays guys were always shocked that I could do complicated financial models in my head. I thought I was just good with numbers – it turns out I was sick.”OVERCOMING ADVERSITIES
Before she could count the likes of Simon Cowell and Sir Philip Green as mates, and was whisked around in a chauffeur-driven £250,000 Rolls Royce Phantom, Staveley had to overcome adversity as a teenager.
Incredibly, she was accepted at Cambridge University aged just 16 – after completing her A-Levels in one year.
But Amanda had to drop out after suffering a number of setbacks.
Staveley has accrued a wealth of £120m and can count on mates including Sir Philip Green and Simon CowellCredit: Getty Images – Getty
Aged 16 Staveley was accepted to Cambridge UniversityCredit: Rex Features
Her dad Robert Staveley, a north Yorkshire landowner who founded the Lightwater Valley theme park, suffered a heart attack.
And her mum’s Huntington’s illness reared its ugly head, and she had her own personal issues to deal with too.
“When I got to university my dad had a heart attack, my mum was very ill with Huntington’s, and I also had an eating disorder,” she said.
“I was educated at a girls private school – Queen Margaret’s in York – and I found being educated with men at university very tough. I had a psychologist, I was sectioned, my weight dropped and I didn’t know how to cope.”
MAKING CONTACTS
At the age of 23, Staveley managed to convince a bank to lend her £180,000 to set up her own restaurant.
Stocks was launched in the village of Bottisham, Cambridgeshire, where Amanda took on the role of chef and waitress – often working till 4am to make sure she was prepped for the next day.
But, despite her long hours, it didn’t deter her from studying for her City exams with ambitions to become a financial adviser, as well as fulfilling modelling duties for extra cash.
With its proximity to the Newmarket Racecourse, Stocks became a haunt for the flat-racing fraternity.
Members of the Dubai-ruling family, the Maktoums, who own the Godolphin Stables, were regulars.
Arab princes and dotcom tycoons from ‘Silicon Fen’ – a nickname given to a region of Cambridgeshire which is home to a cluster of high-tech businesses, were also customers.
Staveley’s first business venture was Stocks restaurantCredit: 2008 AFP
Over the years Staveley built up an enviable contacts bookCredit: PA:Press Association

And with such high-prestige clientele, Staveley was well-placed to pick up an enviable contacts book when she finished her studies.
Since her Stocks days, she has amassed a personal fortune worth around £120million, has a home in Dubai and a luxury apartment on Park Lane.
Soon, she may just add a Quayside penthouse overlooking the Tyne to her property portfolio.
Newcastle United Supporters Trust welcome proposed Saudi takeover More

FORMER Bournemouth manager Eddie Howe is being linked with Newcastle and Southampton.The boss, 43, is rumoured to be on the shortlist to take over from Steve Bruce at St James’ Park following their £300million takeover.
Eddie Howe masterminded a miracle at Bournemouth and is now linked with the Newcastle jobCredit: Getty Images – Getty
But it’s believed Howe will hold out to return to the South Coast, with Southampton.
The tactician performed miracles with the Cherries, taking them from near-League Two oblivion to the Premier League in two spells with the club on a limited budget.
The modest manager credits his mum Anne for being his biggest inspiration as she supported him through his dream of making it in the professional game.
She even played in goal while her two sons fired shots at her and practiced in the park.
Anne passed away in March, 2012 following a short illness, which Eddie admitted made him take stock of his life and return to Dean Court after a short stint at Burnley.
The calm and assured gaffer is very loyal to his family, having once signed his now-retired half-brother Steve for Bournemouth in 2010.

He also had to conquer the bitter disappointment of his playing days being cut short by a serious knee injury when he was just 29-years-old.
However, that didn’t stop the grounded Amersham-born coach from rising to the top, sometimes against all the odds, to be touted as a future England manager.
PLAYING CAREER
Eddie began his footballing career with Bournemouth, making his debut for the South Coast side at the age of just 18.
Three years later and he was surprisingly called up into the England set-up for the Toulon Tournament alongside the likes of Frank Lampard, Jamie Carragher and Emile Heskey.
Over the years, Eddie Howe earned the respect of peers like legendary manager Arsene WengerCredit: Getty Images – Getty
As a promising player, Eddie Howe was picked to play for England’s under-21sCredit: PA:Press Association
What was most surprising about his selection was he was the only League One player selected in the squad.
In 2002, Harry Redknapp signed the ball-playing centre-half for £400k and he seemed destined for the big stage.
But in only his second game for the club against Nottingham Forest, Eddie suffered an injury that was going to affect his life forever.
After jumping to head a ball clear, he heard a click in his left knee. It turned out that he dislocated his knee cap and chipped a bone under the knee.
It meant that the joint was never the same.
He had two two operations, but doctors failed to discover he had a micro-fracture and he still felt pain when trying to run.
Howe visited knee-specialist Dr. Richard Steadman, the man who rebuilt the knees of Alan Shearer and Ronaldo, who told him he would be able to play again but not at the same level.
Howe told the Telegraph: “At the end, I was a shadow of the player I had been.
“I was very keen to finish while people remembered me for the player I was rather than the player I had become.
Eddie Howe suffered a serious knee injury when he was just 24-years-oldCredit: PA:Empics Sport
Eddie Howe knew he would never be the same player again after his knee injuryCredit: PA:Empics Sport
“It was really tough, because the biggest challenge I found when I came back was that I wasn’t as effective.
“I had lost a lot of my attributes that made me the player I was: my pace, my turning ability, my jump.
“I wasn’t very big for a centre-half so I had to jump well and that was one of my strengths.
“When I came back I was jumping about two feet lower. I struggled with my identity and I lost what I was.
“Everyone forgets very quickly what you were and judges you on what you are – and I wasn’t very good. I found that period of my career very, very difficult.”
He went to Swindon on loan in 2004, but didn’t get a game. Then a successful loan spell at Bournemouth the same year gave him renewed hope.
In what became known as the ‘Eddieshare’ scheme, Bournemouth’s fans pulled together to raise money to pay the £21,000 transfer fee needed to sign him.
Eddie repaid their faith by playing for a further three seasons, before he decided it was time to call it a day at 29 – no longer able to play through the pain barrier.
Eddie Howe was re-signed by Bournemouth after the fans donated money to the clubCredit: PA:Empics Sport
Eddie Howe knew his playing days were over and he went into coachingCredit: PA:Empics Sport
CATCHING THE COACHING BUG
During this time Eddie was cutting his teeth coaching the reserve squad, but in September 2008 he was let go when first team manager Kevin Bond lost his job.
Weeks later, Eddie was back at the club he loved and working with the youth set-up thanks to Jimmy Quinn, who reintroduced the aspiring manager to the fold when he was appointed boss.
Then, Quinn was fired from the top job in December and Howe became caretaker manager during the interim.
Despite losing his first two games, Howe was hired permanently in early 2009 and became an overnight success.
The club managed to overturn a 17-point deficit and survived relegation from League Two.
The following season Howe inspired his charges to promotion to League One, guiding them to eight wins from their first nine games.
It was no surprise that mother Anne was there on the terraces, cheering Eddie and his team on.
After all, she divided her time between Dean Court and Scotland, where Eddie’s half-brother Steve made his name at Dundee, Aberdeen, Falkirk and Partick Thistle.
Eddie Howe was appointed Bournemouth boss when Jimmy Quinn was fired in 2008Credit: Getty Images – Getty
Steve Lovell played under half-brother Eddie Howe at BournemouthCredit: PA:Press Association
Eddie Howe managed to overturn a 17-point deficit to save Bournemouth from League Two relegationCredit: PA:Press Association
BOUGHT HIS HALF-BRO
It did become easier for her though when Howe bought his brother to Bournemouth on a free transfer in 2010.
In 2011, Eddie’s future was subject to speculation with plenty of clubs coveting the promising coach.
He joined Burnley, but his world was rocked a year later when his beloved mum Anne passed away.
Howe was living over 250 miles away in Manchester at the time, and he couldn’t carry on at the Clarets.
He returned back to Bournemouth in 2012. Three years later he got them promoted to the Premier League.
He told Bournemouth’s Daily Echo:  “My mum’s death certainly changed my perspective on a lot of things – on life, my career and everything.
“When something like that happens, it makes you re-evaluate and realise what’s really important.
“It was incredibly difficult to deal with and still is. When you lose someone you love so suddenly, it is very hard to take.
Eddie Howe had a brief spell at Burnley from 2011-2012Credit: Mark Robinson – The Sun
Eddie Howe quit Burnley after his mum Anne Howe passed away in 2012Credit: Getty Images – Getty
“But when you can’t grieve properly because you are so far away and detached, it is even harder to deal with.
“That is why coming back to this area and to this football club was a real comfort to me.
“It certainly had a big impact in my personal life and made me a lot happier off the pitch. I was closer to people who had been affected and could also help them.
“There were two totally different sides to coming back – the football part and the family side. They are totally different and there were more reasons to me coming back than I could ever talk about publicly.”
Eddie Howe returned back to Bournemouth and led them to the Premier LeagueCredit: Getty Images – Getty
DEDICATES IT ALL TO MUM
Eddie realises that he is where he is today because of how he was brought up by his mum, who he’s incredibly thankful for.
He told The Telegraph: “I do think the way I was brought up by my mum and the foundations she set me played a big part.
“Most people will say that your parents and your childhood experiences are so important.
“I certainly believe that to be the case for me. I was given some very good advice. I was brought up in a loving family and it has made me very focused on my work.
Eddie Howe believes he is where he is because of his upbringingCredit: Getty – Contributor
“Her passing away has fired me to try to achieve more in memory of her.
“She lived for her kids, really … growing up in a house full of boys with football always around.
“Steve and I were football mad and certainly inspired each other to play.
“It’s usually the dads who are out in the park kicking ball around until late but it was really me with my brothers.
“It was very much us with our mum, walking the dog or watching or sometimes acting as a goalkeeper!
“She would support us in whatever we wanted to do and sometimes that was making the numbers up.
“She is a big inspiration in my life because I want to carry on the good start she gave me. I want to make sure I don’t put that to waste.”
It’s fair to say that Eddie has done far from that, which is why Newcastle, Southampton and Co could do far wrong but appoint this Mr Nice Guy.
Eddie Howe’s half brother was a striker who played on the South CoastCredit: PA:Press Association
Eddie Howe’s success saw him linked with both the Arsenal and England jobs in the pastCredit: Getty Images – Getty More