Thru Black & White Eyes - In Play - 16/Jul/25
Newcastle United finds itself at a crossroads
For my entire life when Liverpool have wanted a Newcastle United player they have come and got him. It happened in the 1970s with Terry McDermott and Alan Kennedy, in the 1980s with Peter Beardsley, in the 1990s with Dieter Hamann and it has happened this century with Andy Carroll, Gini Wiljandum and Jose Enrique. There is well worn path of talent from St James’ Park to Anfield.
Liverpool have been a serious football club all of my life - seriously ambitious about winning trophies and seriously competing for the game’s greatest honours. Newcastle United hasn’t … often enthusiastic about cashing in on talent for whatever reason and well, not being serious about competing and challenging. Too many who have led the club have been happy in their role betraying the club’s potential as football’s bottom feeders.
On 7/Oct/2021 we thought all of that had changed. The Saudi PIF led takeover of Newcastle United was thought to give us the financial muscle to see off any bids for our best players and more importantly turn the tables in the competition for the best talent.
We know it hasn’t happened that way and we know why. We have just spent three windows without a single first team purchase and that has only ended with the welcome arrival of Anthony Elanga from Forest this month.
The rules of engagement within football have been determined by the Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR). That determines who we can buy and who ultimately we need to sell. I do not need to tell you all that Liverpool along with others but mainly Arsenal, Man Utd, Chelsea and Tottenham have created those rules to consolidate their position as the elite clubs in the Premier League and become impervious to challenge from the likes of Newcastle United, Aston Villa, Forest and Everton. One day it might include others but not if those clubs … commonly referred to as the “cartel” continue to get their way. All of those clubs bar Spurs are majority US owned and that is no accident. Nor is it an accident Man City, owned by Middle Eastern owners are in dispute with them.
Who can tell what is really going on with Newcastle United, Liverpool, Hugo Ekitike and Alexander Isak? There may be games of bluff, double-bluff going on but it is impossible to understand really what is really happening. Perhaps even those directly involved don’t know.
What we do know is Liverpool, one of the most powerful clubs in the world and in a league with rules manipulated in their favour want Alexander Isak, by common consensus one of the best if not the best striker in the world. We also know a massive amount of money is involved for agents who only generate a fee when their clients switch clubs. There are massive amounts of money involved to people whose whole raison d’etre is to get their hands on it and as much of it as possible.
Not that Isak alone is one of the players fancied by clubs we all thought we should be challenging. Rumours Man City are interested in Livramento persist and Guimares has admirers too. I have little doubt Tonali would have no shortage of suitors either.
We also know this is or it should be a different iteration of Newcastle United under the ownership of the Saudi PIF, albeit they have been manipulated into a corner by the likes of Liverpool and others. But we have been told by those at United, by no lesser a person than Yasir-al-Rumayyan that the ambition is to be “number one”.
I’ll put it to you and everyone reading this that is not achieved by selling genuinely world-class generational talent to clubs that should be our rivals. It has been said and written that every club will at some point have to sell their best players, That is true but when I look back at the likes of David Beckham, Gareth Bale and others none of them left a prominent English club to join another.
Selling Isak to Liverpool would be a disaster and seriously question the whole underpinning project of the Saudi PIF at Newcastle United given we are absolutely no further forward with a new stadium, training ground, are without a Sporting Director and unclear about our Chief Executive Darren Eales’ position given it was almost 12 months ago we heard the news his health was such he was being forced to stand down.
This seems to be a fast moving situation with our club, Liverpool, Hugo Ekitike, Alexander Isak and the people around them.
What happens will determine what Newcastle United is really about in 2025 - where football allows us to go and indeed if the ambition and determination is truly there to make it happen.
There is a lot at stake.
Keep On, Keepin’ On …
Michael Martin @TFMick1892
I wish I shared people's optimism here, but I can't believe we would be in for Ekitike unless there was an openness to selling Isak. If not this summer, then next. Of course, if it has to happen, then far preferable that it's abroad (but they don't have the money any more).
One point about the "cartel". It's worth remembering that six clubs can't win PL votes alone. They need at least some of the other 14 who have consistently voted with them. Latest example is the Chelsea internal sale scam. The PL has been asked to vote numerous times against it, but with no support. Everyone is in it, not just the traditional big six.
I detest, Liverpool. I detest all the American owned clubs and to be honest, I detest Americans and their fucking superiority complex.
Until the early 70’s there wasn’t that much in it with regards success/size of club (compared to Newcastle). The arrogance of their owners to suggest ‘sell your prize asset, if you don’t we’ll buy any player you show an interest in so you can’t improve because we are so big you can’t compete’ has really wound me up. I appreciate Liverpool are now a much bigger club and a more attractive proposition to most players but their arrogance has got me livid.
I pray we hang on to Isak, sign Ekitike (shoving it right up them) have a fantastic season which keeps the team together and helps us continue to improve and if we don’t win the league, Man City (or anyone else other than Liverpool, Man Utd, Tottenham, Chelsea, and Arsenal) do.
Please PIF, don’t let us down. For once in our lives, don’t let our hopes be dashed!