According to The Telegraph, contracts signed by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund no longer give them exclusivity rights to bid for Newcastle United and current Toons owner Mike Ashley is free to negotiate with other interested parties.
That has boosted American TV mogul Henry Mauriss’ chances of beating them to the purchase of the club and he is looking to step in.
He has stepped up his attempts and has plans to give Magpies head coach Steve Bruce a chance to prove he should remain in the dugout should his group complete the takeover of the club before the start of the 2020-21 Premier League campaign.
The Californian businessman has a detailed project plan for the St. James Park outfit drawn up by his team, and it includes the injection of extra funds to improve the first team squad.
It has been almost 17 weeks since the Premier League legal team started carrying out the Owners’ and Directors’ Test on the Saudis, but Mauriss’ lawyers have claimed that he could complete the test in less than three weeks.
While PIF remain confident they will complete the Newcastle takeover, beIN Sports’ legal team believes that Saudis’ link to piracy and their decision to permanently ban the Qatar-based TV in their Kingdom make it impossible for the deal to go through.
Watching Premier League games in Saudi Arabia is legally impossible at the moment, and it will be interesting to see what the takeover verdict is when it is finally delivered.
