Chris Waugh has been speaking on the latest episode of The Athletic’s Pod On The Tyne, and he has been talking about the failed takeover of Newcastle United.
This was a special episode in which Waugh answered questions from Newcastle fans, and one of the main topics that came up was the failed takeover by Amanda Staveley’s Saudi-backed consortium.
One particularly interesting topic was if the buyers had formally withdrawn their offer, as since they released that statement on 30th July, it has been suggested that all three parties would still be keen on doing the deal, with Waugh revealing that the statement in the press release from the prospective buyers did not include a confirmation of a formal withdrawal.
This is what Waugh said about that:
“I put this to someone close to the bid [on Monday] and they were honest with me and they said, ‘look, I don’t know exactly whether a letter has actually gone to the Premier League to say we formally withdraw.’
“This was the first point that anyone from the prospective buyers spoke on the record throughout the whole process, and that should be taken as how serious this is and that [the statement] is a withdrawal of the bid, as far as they’re concerned.
“They insist this isn’t just bluster, this wasn’t just [a] tactic, it was a genuine withdrawal.”
So, it seems as if no one is sure if an official letter has been sent to the Premier League, but the group believe that their public announcement of their intentions to withdraw was genuine.
Do you think the buyers genuinely withdrew?
Yes, this wasn't a tactic
No, it was all part of the plan
TIF Thoughts…
Since the bid’s withdrawal, Staveley has blamed the Premier League for everything, while fans have launched a petition demanding an independent investigation into why the deal collapsed.
Mike Ashley is also said to be considering legal action, so it is clear that despite the consortium withdrawing their bid to buy Newcastle, there could still be life in this takeover attempt.
So, it remains to be seen what will happen next in this takeover saga that has been going on since April.