Kevin Nolan has risked the wrath of Newcastle fans after defending owner Mike Ashley.
Ashley’s relationship with the Newcastle fans is at rock bottom after Rafa Benitez left when his contract expired at the end of June.
Benitez released a statement afterwards saying “those at the top of the club did not share the same vision” as he did.
Talking on the Alan Brazil Sports Breakfast show (talkSPORT, Friday, 7am) Nolan said, “Listen, with Mike you can’t fault him.
“When he first went he had great intentions of putting Newcastle back on the map and obviously he’s lost that now and he wants to sell it, you know, he wants to get out.
“But he’s still been able to finance the club and make sure that everything is running smoothly. You go up there and it’s a fantastic club and what he’s done within the ground is fantastic.
“The fans want a sale, Mike wants a sale and when that happens everybody will be happy – Mike as well.
“The whole Rafa Benitez thing, I think he knew what he was going into when he first walked into that club because Mike is not one to move the goalposts.
“I think Rafa has done quite well in working the media in terms of the way he feels and what he wants.
“I feel for the fans. I feel for Mike as well.”
OPINION
Newcastle fans did not like this interview at all. Many of them responded to the interview with heavy criticism of their former captain Nolan, and more than one said he must be angling for the Newcastle job. Here are just a few of the Twitter responses.
Nolan just erased 3 years of service to Newcastle in 3 minutes. Impressive
— Vlad (@vladmncl7) July 5, 2019
Such a shame that he’s spouting this tripe, must be angling for a role at the club
— No Comment (@uhugl3w) July 5, 2019
Embarrassing stuff from Kevin Nolan. Clueless. #AshleyOut
— Damien Coughlan (@dynamodamo) July 5, 2019
Kevin Nolan putting his hat in the ring for #NUFC job. MIKES done this MIKES done that !!! I’ll tell you this , when he said that he went down in my estimations . @talkSPORT another yes man .. Nolan and Ameobi as his number 2 ..
— Gazza (@Gazonca) July 5, 2019
It’s an emotive subject and you won’t find many Newcastle fans willing to listen to the other side. Putting aside the rights and wrongs though, the new Premier League season starts in a little over 30 days and Newcastle haven’t made any signings and don’t have a manager. Neil Redfearn and Ben Dawson are currently charged with pre-season preparations while Ashley looks for a new man to take the helm at his club. Something needs to happen fast. Newcastle fans are still hoping a takeover happens but the chance of that going through before the season kicks off is dwindling. The big question is, does Ashley really want to sell? There are some Newcastle fans who are convinced he doesn’t and that talks of a takeover are just a smokescreen. The answer will only come if and when a sale actually goes through. Peter Redding, from Capital Radio UAE, tweeted today to say that BZG are adamant their takeover is still on course and that a statement would be “incoming”. Our view? It’s hard as a football fan to side with Ashley, but he’s the owner of the club and he’s within his rights to run it how he sees fit. Football is big business, especially in the Premier League, and money will always win over the wishes of the fans.