The 2021/22 season started terribly for Newcastle United. Fresh from having a takeover bid by the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia blocked by the Premier League, they started the campaign with one point from its first four games.
By the end of November; they were bottom of the table, without a win in their first 14 games, and looked set to be relegated for the first time since the 2015/16 season. From the outside, things were looking pretty miserable at the club, with fans comforting themselves any way they could. However, behind the scenes, there was reason to think that this downturn in form wouldn’t last much longer.
The takeover bid that had initially been blocked by the Premier League was officially completed on the 7th of October 2021, after the league had received legally binding assurances that “the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia will not control Newcastle United FC”. The Public Investment Fund took an 80% share in the club, with PCP Capital and Reuben Brothers taking 10% each.
At the time of writing, Newcastle has won 5 of their last 7 games and sit 14th in the league, 9 points above the relegation zone. So, what has changed since the Saudi investment group took over?
One of the first acts of ownership was to remove Steve Bruce from the position of first-team manager and replace him with Eddie Howe. Bruce had been lambasted in his time at Newcastle for his negative style of football and failure to make the most of the talent they had at the club. In Eddie Howe, Newcastle has a young manager who’s proven himself at the Premier League level – taking Bournemouth to a club-record 9th in the Premier League during his time at the club.
Taking the club over in October gave the owners time to plan their moves for the upcoming January transfer window. When clubs are taken over by billionaire owners, they’re at risk of falling victim to overspending. Clubs know when a team has the cash to burn and will charge over the odds for players, they were planning on getting rid of anyway.
Newcastle United managed to avoid that trap and improved almost every position on the pitch, without paying extortionate amounts of money for each player.
Highlights of the January transfer window include picking up Kieran Tripper for £12m (including add-ons) from Atletico Madrid and Bruno Guimarães from Olympique Lyon for £33m. Despite being 31, Keiran Trippier is still at the peak of his career after enjoying a successful spell at European giants Atletico Madrid. He brings some much-needed experience to the team and his set-pieces have been vital in Newcastle’s recent run of results.
There has been a good mix of youth and experience brought in over the transfer window, with Joe Willock from Arsenal and Chris Wood from Burnley also being brought into the fold. Wood has been playing in the Premier League for the past 5 years, scoring at least 10 goals in each of those seasons for Burnely. With Newcastle’s recent struggles up-front, this seems like an excellent buy to give them some much-needed firepower.
This won’t be the end of Newcastle’s spending. Assuming that they will be playing in the Premier League next season (all but assured if this recent form continues), the team and the owners will start looking further up the table. Some betting sites have Newcastle at 8/1 to win the league within the next 5 years! Whether you’re betting from the UK, the US, or Asia, there are lots of generous bonus offers to take advantage of with a range of different sports available to bet on. There are lots of top betting sites to choose from, with great options for mobile gaming so you can play on the go. Whether you enjoy betting on Premier League action, Asian esports tournaments, or traditional casino games, these sites have it all. The ultimate aim of the Saudi Public Investment Fund is to “create a consistently successful team that’s regularly competing for major trophies”, so the Premier League title isn’t out of the question.
The season isn’t over yet, but Newcastle United has made big strides towards securing survival in the Premier League for another year, as well as building for a much brighter future.