Chronicle journalist Mark Douglas has just posted a fascinating thread on the contents of the new BZG statement released on Monday through Capital Radio broadcaster Peter Redding.
The statement, which Redding subsequently claimed was from the CEO of the BZG, stated that both sides had “cooperated amicably” throughout the process and that “press claims of no bids or Premier League approval processes are simply untrue”.
The BZG CEO claimed that they had “completed every aspect required in a takeover process”.
Douglas made a number of points on Tuesday morning.
Firstly, that despite attempts to corroborate it, his BZG sources were yet to confirm the contents.
Well firstly, attempts to verify it have proved frustrating. Two channels I have for BZG are yet to reply to confirm it's veracity. Not to criticise the person Tweeting it but we couldn't/wouldn't reproduce something like that as fact without double sourcing it.
— Mark Douglas (@MsiDouglas) July 9, 2019
Douglas claimed that if the BZG wants it to be picked up by other sources it should verify the contents with other journalists – something Douglas claims is just “responsible journalism”.
He went on to say that according to his sources, the Owners’ and Director’s Test hasn’t even begun yet, in direct contradiction to the BZG statement. He also said that he’d asked the club for comment but received nothing back from them.
On the actual contents (I do think it's likely kosher), it says very little new & doesn't clarify what needs to be clarified. It's confusing.
My info remains owners/director's test hasn't started. That contradicts their statement & they haven't replied to requests on that.
— Mark Douglas (@MsiDouglas) July 9, 2019
VERDICT
Yet more confusion for Newcastle fans. The statement that Peter Redding posted yesterday did nothing to clarify the situation and just served to frustrate fans more. He said that the BZG wanted to release it like that so that fans would get the info and that other media sources would report it. But that’s just a bizarre way of getting those results. Why not just release it through an official channel or through more established media – like the Newcastle Chronicle itself. The BZG used them to publish earlier statements so why choose a single social media account from someone – with all due respect – less well known for breaking news? The stuff that fans really wanted to know was left out of the statement, too. If both sides are cooperating and one wants to buy/one wants to sell, what’s the hold-up? If it’s the Owners’ and Directors’ Test then why not say so? Instead, there’s just more conjecture, with the BZG dismissing press claims that the test hasn’t started and the press (in the shape of Douglas) doubling down. One thing fans will agree on is Douglas saying the situation is the “worst in my 11 years here”. No manager, no new players, both top scorers gone and a takeover that’s just stuck in a holding pattern.