Newcastle United, profoundly known as the Magpies club, had a major Saudi takeover when the ownership of the club changed from Mike Ashley to the PIF. As has Saudi ownership been in the history of football sport so far, this takeover as well was expected to change much of the club's history going forward.
Has Newcastle's PIF takeover taken them to where they expected in these 3 years?
In November 2021, at the time of the infamous takeover, Saudi stakeholders had arrived with the ambition of making the Magpies the best club in European football. Given the Saudi investment, much was being speculated for the club's future at the time. Now that around 3 years have passed since the event, the question arises: Has Newcastle's PIF takeover taken them to where they expected in these 3 years?
Before PIF's takeover, Newcastle United had been a mid-table PL team for the major part of its club history. While they did possess some exciting players in their squad, the club felt much too far from seriously contending for a trophy at that time. Thus, when the Saudi takeover took place, the owners' mission to make the club the best in European football sounded a bit too much.
However, certainly, the club has progressed much in their journey so far since then. Investing in some of the key prospects for the club's future, making high-profile signings, and appointing Eddie Howe as the chief of the unit, the Magpies club has certainly improved, even though they are significantly away from their final expectations.
Since November 2021, under Eddie Howe, Newcastle has played a Cup Final at Wembley and qualified for the Champions League once. Apart from this, the English mastermind did play a crucial role in uplifting the club from the status of being a midtable team to a much stronger side in the Premier League.
As per reports from the Athletic, the Magpies have exceeded their expectations from what they imagined their progress would be since the takeover. But, clearly, the club still feels far from its ultimate goal, to emerge as one of the best clubs in world football. Moreover, as Amanda Staveley believed back then, the unit still needs much more to be a serious PL tilt contender in the next few years.
As per the current scenario, having some of the best future prospects, with the team having an elite group of players, the club is on its way to becoming one of the Premier League Giants. Given the way manager Eddie Howe led the club in the last few seasons, he certainly possesses the ability to take them to the number one spot in the future.