Newcastle Toons
Fansided

Reports: Mike Ashley raising the price tag for Newcastle United

By Roy Emanuel

BARNSLEY, ENGLAND - DECEMBER 12: Mike Ashley, Chairman of Newcastle United looks on during the Coca-Cola Championship match between Barnsley and Newcastle United at Oakwell on December 12, 2009 in Barnsley, England. (Photo by Matthew Lewis/Getty Images)
BARNSLEY, ENGLAND - DECEMBER 12: Mike Ashley, Chairman of Newcastle United looks on during the Coca-Cola Championship match between Barnsley and Newcastle United at Oakwell on December 12, 2009 in Barnsley, England. (Photo by Matthew Lewis/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

Newcastle United’s owner is looking for a new number to make a potential deal go through.

Newcastle United and manager Rafa Benitez have endured a difficult start to 2017-18, and have been able to get the club into the top half of the Premier League table with sharp performances in the second half of the campaign. Takeover talks have been a constant cloud over the current term, and now it seems that owner Mike Ashley is modifying his asking price this summer.

Sky Sports reported on Monday that there will need to be significant progress between Ashley and PCP Capital Partners in the coming weeks if a sale is going to happen. Due to a shortened transfer window and the madness that surrounds the FIFA World Cup, there is even less time than usual to confirm a transaction.

However, the interesting aspect of the report is Ashley’s expectations for the final amount.

“Having gambled on Newcastle surviving the drop this season, it is understood Newcastle owner Mike Ashley will be looking to recoup between £380-£400m from the sale of the club, which is significantly more than the £300m that was offered by Staveley last October.”

How this must affect Amanda Staveley and PCP Capital Partners is the key variable now in this situation.

Ashley rejected several offers from the investment group earlier this season, and now the total for the club has increased significantly.

Related Story: Ten intriguing free agents for NUFC to consider this summer

While the future for the Toon appeared to be very different when negotiations began months ago, this could be a risky strategy for Ashley.

Other investors

The risk for Ashley is present in collapsing the deal with PCP Capital Partners. Other than being mentioned previously in a general sense, competition for purchasing the club does not seem to truly exist at this point.

Staveley and her team are the 53-year-old businessman’s best opportunity at earning profits on his 2007 investment at St. James’ Park.

With Rafa Benitez’s future unclear at the moment as well, the Magpies need to have an understanding of what to expect moving forward.

Next: NUFC's top nine players to wear the number nine shirt

Newcastle United owner Mike Ashley continues to work towards selling the club, but the only guarantee thus far has been complete confusion and rampant speculation.