Newcastle United

Graeme Souness: 'Every Newcastle United fan will welcome Mike Ashley exit'

By Barney Corkhill, Editor | 17 April 2020

Souness: 'Every Newcastle fan will welcome Mike Ashley exit'

Former Newcastle United manager Graeme Souness believes that the prospective takeover of the club, and Mike Ashley's departure, will be welcomed by every supporter.

Former Newcastle United manager Graeme Souness has claimed that the club's takeover will be welcomed by every Magpies supporter.

Amanda Staveley's PCP Capital Partners group are closing in on a £340m deal to buy the St James' Park outfit, which has been up for sale since October 2017.

The deal would see Mike Ashley's controversial 13-year reign come to an end, and Souness believes that every Newcastle supporter will be glad to see the back of the unpopular owner.

"It will be welcomed by every Newcastle supporter. Generally with these things, if they're serious you don't hear about them but this has dragged on for an enormous amount of time," Souness told Sky Sports News.

"Ashley was seen as a saviour going in there - an extremely wealthy man, but as wealthy as he is, the Premier League is a very expensive place to operate in today if you're looking to spend your own money.

"He quickly realised that, so he's been looking for someone to come in with fresh investment to take Newcastle back to where they think they should be, which is the top end of the league and maybe getting back into the Champions League.

"It will be welcomed by every Newcastle supporter and I think even Ashley wants out. He's made it plain that if someone comes up with the right price, he'd be out of there."

The takeover bid is understood to now be with the Premier League for approval.