Newcastle boss Eddie Howe refuses to rule out loaning players from other PIF clubs in Saudi Arabia…as long as it’s ‘right’ for Magpies
- Newcastle is owned by Private Investment Fund, as are four clubs in Saudi Arabia
- Eddie Howe says the club is open to loaning players from the Saudi Pro League
- The Magpies have spent £52 million on Sandro Tonali and remain on the market
Newcastle boss Eddie Howe has refused to decide on moving players on loan in Saudi Arabia.
The Magpies, similar to four teams in the Saudi Pro League, are majority owned by the country’s Private Investment Fund.
Howe says Newcastle is open to trade with clubs in the Middle Eastern country as long as it acts in the club’s best interests.
He said: ‘That depends on whether it’s the right thing for Newcastle. We will always act with our best interests first.”
The ambition and financial power of the Saudi clubs is clear as they continue to target top European stars such as Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema, who have joined Al-Nassr and Al-Ittihad respectively.
Eddie Howe has refused to decide on moving players from Saudi Arabia
Karim Benzema is one of the biggest names to move to the Saudi Pro League this summer
“I don’t think the fees per se have been excessive – maybe the wages, which makes it attractive to players,” Howe said of Saudi’s bid to sign big names this summer.
Newcastle have spent £52 million on Italian midfielder Sandro Tonali and are exploring deals for Leicester winger Harvey Barnes and Southampton defender Tino Livramento.
But Howe says ‘nothing is close’ when he revealed the magnitude of the challenges the club faces given the constraints of Financial Fair Play.
He said, ‘Depth [of squad] is huge for us this year. With the leagues we play in, with three games a week, we need to be able to rotate the team, but attract players who are of the same level.
‘That’s what we want to do, but we know we have a lot of work to do. Players are expensive these days. We work within FFP guidelines, which is very difficult for us. We may have to be creative, but we try to look at all possibilities to make the club stronger.
The Magpies have spent £52 million on Sandro Tonali and remain in the market for new signings
“We have a very strict budget that we try to work within. Always with FFP there are certain things you can be creative with, but we don’t have a huge budget to work with.
“Sometimes there were frustrations and difficult days. We know the challenges we face. All summer I experienced all the emotions.’
Newcastle opened preparations for the new season on Saturday with a hard-fought 3-2 victory over non-league side Gateshead.
They will return to action against Rangers on Tuesday before their tour of the United States kicks off.