The Daily Telegraph wrote an article about the development of Newcastle, which said that it may take at least ten years for them to realize their ambitions after the Saudis take over the Magpies Legion.
This is of course contrary to the goal of Newcastle Chairman and PIF Chairman Yasir Rumayan, who hopes Newcastle will become the number one club in the Premier League. But for now they have to have a little realism, especially inside the PIF. Newcastle has the seventh highest income in the Premier League and the eighth highest salary cost, but it still needs to be realistic.
Earlier this year, after Rumayan looked at a vision for the future, he asked all departments to submit plans for growth and improvement. Rumayan is eager to succeed, and his goal is to give Newcastle the Premier League championship and the European competition in five years.
This is indeed a lofty goal, but Newcastle is still far behind "Big6", and the setbacks and difficulties this summer further highlight their huge financial gap. Unless Newcastle can have a salary cost and transfer budget comparable to the old English giants, it will be difficult for them to compete with those teams for top honors.
Since taking office last month, Newcastle CEO Hopkinson has emphasized that if the team's salary budget ranks eighth, the league ranking should be comparable. According to statistics, Newcastle's salary expenditure is at least 55 million pounds lower than defending champion Liverpool and 80 million pounds lower than Manchester City. This gap will be even more obvious after Liverpool’s big signings this summer.
Hopkinson's main task is to drive business growth and increase revenue streams. Newcastle has made significant progress, and is expected to reach 320 million pounds in 2024, ranking seventh in the Premier League, but is still far below Liverpool’s 614 million, Manchester United’s 662 million and Manchester City’s 719 million pounds.
Thanks to PIF's financial support and Eddie Howe's outstanding work, Newcastle has leaped from a relegation team to a contender for the Champions League qualification. During the Ashley period, the Magpies looked out of reach for the championship trophy, but they beat Liverpool last season to win the League Cup, the team's first domestic trophy in 70 years. At present, Newcastle's goal should be focused on competing for European qualifications and winning another domestic cup championship. Premier League and Champions League championships are not realistic goals.
Financial rules make Saudi wealth "unable to display"
When PIF acquired Newcastle in October 2021, concerns from other Premier League clubs have now dissipated. We have rarely heard coaches or senior managers from other clubs complain about PIF's participation in the Premier League, which says it all, those old orders feel comfortable and safe.
Premier League and UEFA financial regulations are working, and while Newcastle has the world's wealthiest owners, those black and white texts have prevented them from getting a lot of money from their funders like Chelsea and Manchester City did. Looking at this summer window, you will know Newcastle's dilemma. They often end up failing when competing with Big6. This is true for João Pedro, Drap, Ekitic, Trafford, Mbermo and Sheshko.
Not to mention that Newcastle was forced to sell forward general Isaac to Liverpool. Newcastle did not want to sell him, but Isaac threatened to stop training. And he knew that Liverpool could provide a weekly salary of 300,000 pounds, while Newcastle's contract renewal offer was only 200,000 pounds per week.
Currently, Newcastle is planning to renew three top players: Tonali, Livramento and Botman. However, renewal must also meet the salary structure, with captain Guimares currently the highest-paid player in Newcastle, with his weekly salary of about £180,000. Therefore, in the negotiations, the team will face many challenges.
And the decision on the new stadium is still undecided. If Newcastle wants to continue to compete for major honors, it will not only require significant commercial growth, but also promote large-scale infrastructure projects. However, those big projects promised since the acquisition have not yet begun, and the delay in construction of the new stadium is also frustrating. It seems that there will be no definite news about this matter until 2026. The problem is mainly focused on costs, with the expected expenditure on new stadiums exceeding 1 billion pounds, and the difficulties in construction on protected green spaces and protected areas in the city center. PIF will not fully cover the construction costs of the new stadium, they plan to pay only half of the cost, and the rest will be settled through a club loan. But in fact, the cost of building a new stadium is not within the scope of financial rules, and PIF's measures are inevitably confusing.
As for the new training base, it is also an important part of Newcastle's long-term vision, but the site selection has not been determined at present, let alone construction has started. Both projects will take at least five years to complete, or even longer.
PIF will not invest unlimitedly in Newcastle, but hopes to achieve sustainable and long-term growth within the framework of football investment rules. This takes time and requires patience to wait for the flowers to bear fruit. For Chairman Rumayan, before narrowing the financial gap, it is their realistic goal to keep Newcastle stable in the top eight of the Premier League every season.