Sean

Don't think there's really anything new in here but article in the Independent: http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/premier-league/newcastle-united-sale-mike-ashley-amanda-staveley-january-transfer-plans-threat-rafa-benitez-a8094846.html Mike Ashley and Amanda Staveley stand-off threatens Newcastle United's January transfer plans Rafa Benitez's plans to reinforce his squad next month will be severely jeopardised if there is no progress in the talks between current owner Ashley and proposed new owner Staveley Forty days. That is now the predicted timescale needed for the takeover of Newcastle United to be completed. Forty days, once a bid has been accepted. The estimate comes from those close to the Amanda Staveley camp. There is an almost desperate quest now for positive news on the sale of a city’s football club to the still largely unknown financier from Yorkshire. Forty days, however, suggests that the current state of limbo is about to hold for a significant period of January. Staveley’s bid of around £250m is already considerably short of what Ashley is willing to accept to end his decade in charge at St James’ Park. There has been nothing concrete to suggest he has dropped it from the high three hundreds. Staveley will have to relent and up her bid to even bring Ashley and his advisors back to the table. The suggestion is that, with the threat of a relegation battle, she is not prepared to go any higher. That could close the door on a possible takeover anyway, but even the positive take that was being put on the latest developments suggest another difficult and fraught month for the manager Rafa Benitez. Benitez is increasingly concerned about the impasse that the club may go through in next month’s transfer window. That 40 day estimation, a real, best case scenario if a fee can be agreed, will do little to calm his fears. The most problematic area remains the ability to agree a fee, for Staveley to convince Ashley she is genuinely ready to meet his selling price, which remains north of £300m and for the bid not to be weighed with caveats. Ashley has held firm for nine years as he has looked to sell the club. Those believing that his dogmatic approach has radically changed need possibly to remember that. The Staveley camp insist, however, that there is still desire to take over the club, to end a difficult decade in Newcastle’s history. Staveley herself will lead the financing, but even her group is aware the clock is ticking to be able to make any sort of impact in what feels another crucial transfer window. There is still much to be done, not least getting anywhere near to agreeing a fee, but from there comes procedure; a formal period of due diligence, proof of funds, the Premier League’s Owners and Directors test and then a sales and purchase agreement being put in place. All of those elements, which could potentially run through the difficult period of Christmas, are now predicted to take around 40 days. This is not the timescale that either party set when Ashley formally put the club up for sale once more in October and Staveley first showed her hand. Then the talk was of a change by Christmas. That deadline has passed, and the two sides have still a lengthy process to go through. Benitez is worried about his ability to compete in the January transfer window. The last two windows have been hugely frustrating, which has been well documented and have cast doubt over his future. The continued uncertainty will present another major problem. Ashley is unlikely to consider spending until there is a definite conclusion to the takeover talks. The timescale does not lend itself to the considered planning and constructive January that a team which has taken one point from the last 18 needs. With or without a takeover, it points to a frenetic finish to the closing stages of a transfer window, at the end of January, a situation the club has been in before.

It's fucking ridiculous the things he's coming out with! Gave a corner to Man Utd even though he knew it was a goal kick because he was "petrified of Roy Keane" what the actual fuck man?! Corrupt bastards.

It would be nice to know what's actually going on regards this before the Leicester game, as it's all well and good celebrating our 125th anniversary, however the atmosphere will undoubtedly be a bit subdued with all the uncertainty around the future of the club. Oh for it to be sold beforehand...just imagine the positivity and buzz around the place.

This is wrong. He bought and built really well with us, and also at Napoli where the team he built is the one doing so well now. I thought he bought well for you for last season. Maybe not so much for this, but he wasn't given loads and he found you a bargain in Merino. Yes, he buys a few players at lower prices who don't work out, but then that applies to all who rummage at the bottom end of the market. The problem is when you only have a few quid, nearly every buy has to work out. As you say we're shopping in the bargain bins, no manager would get them all right. It seems to be a criticism levelled at Rafa as if other managers always get every transfer right. Baffling tbh.

The fact that he has openly put out a statement saying the club is for sale, negotiations have been going on for weeks and the Sky "interview" was practically an advert saying "please come and take this club off of my hands", suggest that he does have intention of selling it. The risk of relegation coupled with the current squad that we have put the club miles away from his £380m valuation or whatever it is. He won't get a better deal for it than a bid in the range of £250m-£320m. He openly put out a statement in 2008 to say the club was up for sale as well, only it wasn't really. Plus his interview was a way of sticking 2 fingers up to Rafa and the fans. Can't fully recall the 2008 statement or whenever it was, but this must seem different to then. The Sky interview was that, but journalists and fans alike managed to encapsulate it as an advert for the club. The whole thing was staged, there is a reason why he chose to say 'if someone wants to take this seat and fund NUFC' et cetera in it. He wants out. It makes financial sense for him to do so, as well as just sense in general. If you want to sell a football club I don't think the way to advertise the fact is to go on TV. It would be done through business channels etc. It's not like billionaires would be watching his interview and get a brainwave from it. Similar to him putting a public email address out there last time

:lol:

The fact that he has openly put out a statement saying the club is for sale, negotiations have been going on for weeks and the Sky "interview" was practically an advert saying "please come and take this club off of my hands", suggest that he does have intention of selling it. The risk of relegation coupled with the current squad that we have put the club miles away from his £380m valuation or whatever it is. He won't get a better deal for it than a bid in the range of £250m-£320m. He openly put out a statement in 2008 to say the club was up for sale as well, only it wasn't really. Plus his interview was a way of sticking 2 fingers up to Rafa and the fans.

Aye, I'm sure he'd sell if he was offered a daft sum, but he seems happy enough to hang on if he doesn't and continue to use the club as a branding tool for SD. That's a far cry from someone who wants out as we are led to believe. In the current market, £250m for a PL Newcastle United with Rafa Benitez is quite cheap. If that is the offer on the table, I’m unsurprisinged that he hasn’t accepted it. PCP need to up their offer, not the other way around. 250ml in the current market etc...show your workings out ? This is what I was thinking...funny how so many people are experts at valuing a club now

Nothing at all, it doesn't look like any news outlets/journalists have a clue whats actually happening. In reality you'd think it'd either be agreed by now or hanging from a thread.

Yeah I’ve got the same mindset Same here. It all hinges on Ashleys intentions, which isn't very reassuring tbh.

Well I for one think it's worrying that Ashley has a bid but seemingly has ignored it or not replied. Sounds very familiar. Thats assuming any of the reports are accurate of course.

This is whats worrying me too.

Well he's been relegated twice and came straight back twice so somehow I don't think the stupid bastard will see things like that. Get back to the prem and the club will probably be worth more in a few years unfortunately.

So should they just come straight in at £400 million then? If he really wants to sell the deal will get done. It all comes down to Ashley intentions really. Cos that's what I said. Any deal is not only about the intentions of the seller. The buyer has to make the seller think they've achieved fair value. What I know for sure is that the old adage of 'time kills all deals' is 100% correct in my personal experience. Well yeah, it would seem Ashley is gambling in regards to the "time kills all deals" part of this, and thats pretty worrying.

So should they just come straight in at £400 million then? If he really wants to sell the deal will get done. It all comes down to Ashley intentions really.

Think of the Abraham/Cabellero deals, contracts there ready to be signed off....then silence for weeks until the deals fall through. Wouldn't surprise me if it's a similar story here ffs.

it wont I put a few quid on West Ham at 20/1 to ensure they don't win

Just had a look. It's the last game of the season, Corinthians have already won the league and play away against Recife have to win to survive. That'll explain the odds Yeah true but if Newcastle had to play Man City on last day to stay up I would’nt be that confident. I was thinking of exactly the same scenario Interesting odds..I'm guessing the bookies are expecting them to throw the game?

Fucking deserved it!!!

Think this takeover talks sending Rafa a bit mad...either that or he's trying to drive the price down

easy mistake to make, I mean he SHOULD have been sacked, and the happiness when he left kinda clouded how he left (remember Mike thought he had it sussed with Pardew, his dream manager). I think any other club in the football league and he would have been sacked. So excited to see what him and Carver can do to West Brom given time

It will be interesting to see if Ashley is prepared to lower his demands in order to sell up for a reasonable fee. I can't see PCP hanging around until the summer, if the deal's not done before Christmas, realistically it's probably off. They won't want a club in the championship, and Ashley won't want to sell for an even lower fee either. I can't see why they would want to hang around and wait to see which division we are in before going through all this again. Ashley has to lower the asking price or agree a relegation clause basically. Otherwise he'll have to rebuild the club without Rafa and with a furious fanbase on his back. He must just be holding out until the last minute to squeeze every last penny he can out of PCP. He's been trying to sell the club since the day he opened the books and saw he's been swindled by the Halls. This is his first, and probably last, serious chance to get his money back, and possibly make a profit. He's not going to let it slip away knowing that he'll have to heavily invest to keep us up. I don't believe for a second he was actually swindled tbh, its an excuse he's used not to invest and to saddle us with debt to him. Anyway, lets hope he sells.

This is probably just about where I am atm. Until I hear it's broken down I'm assuming it's still on. And if it's not been scrapped yet after a couple of weeks of bids being made then logic dictates they can't be that far apart. If there was no chance of a compromise because the valuations were so far apart it would have collapsed a while ago. I'm crossing my fingers hugely, I'm not really thinking too much about it but it makes sense to me in my own little brain! It's a lot nicer than assuming the worst. Hope I'm right but only time will tell. I'm finding it easier to assume the worst and hope to wake up one morning and go absolutely mental if it happens only because I don't think I could take the disappointment if i convince myself (and tell everyone I know) that it's gonna happen and then it goes tits up. Rational logic would suggest that things are still ongoing, and if it was anything other than NUFC and MA I would say surely it'll get done. Just can't quite take that final step in my mind with everything thats happened before (well I did for a few weeks but was daydreaming far too much about an ambitious NUFC). It's not that I think it won't happen just trying to cushion myself against the blow if not.....ah fuck it the clubs gonna be dead to me if it doesn't happen and Rafa walks anyway, it's gotta happen this time hasn't it Hope the training complex is ripped out and redone fit for the 21st century, the academy is properly invested in, the Sports Direct signage is ripped up and set on fire, the stadium is given a good clean, we maximise our commercial earning power, tours/marketing abroad to help merchandising etc, fuck it lets rename nine to Shearer's bar even, I want every last thing that cunt has done to our club to be reversed. Lets even try and get the letters he auctioned off back from the buyers.

Carver, fucking hell man :lol: