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Newcastle's rise is not what you think, but really only they can challenge Manchester City

Newcastle's rise is not what you think, but really only they can challenge Manchester City

News on May 28, the British media lacked respect for Newcastle, and Newcastle's owner.

The epitome of this prejudice is that they are rich, even the richest club in the Premier League, but the team plays like a League One team, and they even qualify for the Champions League!

Arguably, throughout the season, from social media to MOTD, when Alain Schiller was not on duty, there was more jealousy than appreciation for what Newcastle had achieved.

Part of this sentiment comes from hatred of the rich, which is understandable. Thirty years ago, many neutral fans also liked Newcastle because they expected Kevin Keegan's team to play against the dominant Manchester United, and even if Newcastle did not win the Premier League, it won a lot of applause.

Now the situation is different. The media and social media have somewhat demonized Saudi patrons, which has led more audiences to focus only on the £350 billion owned by PIF, rather than seriously studying the club's efforts from on-field to off-field after PIF's acquisition of Newcastle, as well as the profession and occupation of all aspects of work.

Strictly follow FFPs and spend money with extreme caution

In October 2021, Ashley sold Newcastle for £300 million. When he took over Newcastle in 2007, the club had £77 million in debt, and by the time he left, the debt had expanded to £110 million, more than $30 million.

Messi, Ronaldo, Kylian Mbappe, Neymar... Almost all of the superstars with more than £100 million in "units" were mentioned in the 2021 winter window and linked to Newcastle, but nothing happened.

The Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF) is the richest institution in the world, but they are cautious at Newcastle United.

The Premier League stipulates that a club's total loss in three years must not exceed £100 million, and Newcastle have never challenged the Premier League to comply with the FFP.

When Eddie Howe took over in November 2021, Newcastle started the 2021-22 season without a win in 14 games, and no team in Premier League history has been relegated in this situation. But Eddie Howe led the team to 12 wins in their last 18 games and finished 11th.

Is this the result of piling up big-name stars? No!

In the winter window of the 2021-22 season, Newcastle bought Lyon's Brazilian midfielder Guimarães for £36 million, and now Barca may buy Guimarães for £75m, but Newcastle may not be released.

At the time, Dan Byrne, Trippier and Wood were also added. Only high school forward Wood did not play at Newcastle, and Byrne and Trippier are the two main full-backs of the Magpies today.

People thought Newcastle would buy like crazy in the 2022-23 summer window, but Newcastle remained calm and cautious.

£60 million to bring in forward Isaac, £30 million to bring in 22-year-old central defender Portman from Lille, and tens of millions of levels of Pope and Taggart. The notable addition of the winter window was to poach Gordon from Everton.

Compared with Chelsea, who changed owners, Newcastle spent money and simply searched.

But sane fans will find that Newcastle are looking to the future, with more than £30 million in young people in their early 20s with strong growth potential.

Who exactly does FFP restrict

The Premier League has launched 115 charges against Manchester City for alleged FFP violations after UEFA banned Manchester City, but it was overturned by the Court of Arbitration for Sport and ended with a slight penalty.

But we have to admit that 10 years ago, whether it was UEFA or the Premier League, in fact, in terms of financial fair play rules, the implementation was not strict, and it also allowed Manchester City, Paris Saint-Germain and other clubs to exploit a lot of loopholes.

Now the situation is different, and any wind and grass will be put under the microscope for review. The Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF) strictly adheres to the FFP, does not cause any controversy, and is a kind of taoguang and obscurity, and the short-term forbearance is for a more glorious future.

The fact that FFP has caused is that Manchester City has made a fortune by piling up superstars in the past and accumulated a thick family base, and the transfer market has been in and out in recent years, in line with FFP regulations.

In terms of revenue, Manchester City took advantage in many ways.

Taking the Champions League as an example, how much each team points depends not only on how far it goes, but also on its ranking in the past ten years in UEFA. The newcomers will definitely suffer more than the teams that have had a strong record in the past 10 years.

For example, if they all go out of the Champions League group stage and do not enter the knockout stage, Newcastle is estimated to be around £23 million, while Manchester City will get £58 million, which is the gap.

The Saudis are also imitating Manchester City's blood transfusion path

In the Ashley era, Newcastle's revenue in a season was between 1.5 and 180 million pounds, and after the Saudis acquisition, this season's performance is excellent, and the revenue scale is expected to reach 300 million pounds, but compared to Manchester City's 680 million, it is still half less.

In terms of club revenue, Newcastle still cannot catch up with Manchester City, Manchester United, Liverpool and other giants for the time being.

However, Newcastle senior management is also looking at Manchester City's "success stories", such as the sky-high contract of sponsor Etihad Airways. The Abu Dhabi consortium-controlled company has signed sponsorship agreements with Manchester City FC at prices above market value, and City now has more than 49 sponsors in all categories.

Saudi Arabia also has an IMG-like company called SELA, which is about to become the main sponsor of Newcastle next season and is expected to sponsor around £30 million.

If the Premier League's control in this regard is just a formality, then in the future this is the pipeline for Saudi Petrogold to enter Newcastle United, and when Newcastle's income from commercial sponsorship reaches £150 million, be careful they have to really make a move in the transfer market!

Newcastle's rise is not what you think, but really only they can challenge Manchester City

The right people and the right way

If you look at the Premier League over time, you'll find that successful clubs are almost all the same. A clear long-term plan and full support in implementing strategies around a motivated manager. Manchester City, Liverpool, Arsenal are all the same, and Newcastle are no exception.

The president of Newcastle Club is Rumeyan from Saudi Arabia and the CEO is Ms. Amanda Staveli of the United Kingdom, who have worked in the British business and investment community for many years and are very professional.

This combination of senior club leaders ensures consistency and consistency in the execution of the club's strategy and core tactics under the strategy.

After the acquisition, Newcastle's two most important moves were to poach sporting director Ashworth from Brighton and appoint Eddie Howe as the team's manager. The excellent work of Ashworth and Eddie Howe has allowed Newcastle to qualify for the Champions League this season, and in fact this goal has been achieved a season ahead of Newcastle's internal plan.

What kind of football is Newcastle playing?

High pressing, extreme pass control, fast counterattack... In fact, in today's top teams, the various styles have gained maximum integration, but they do have their own characteristics.

For example, Manchester City, in recent years, has integrated high-position pressing on top of the ultimate pass control, and then evolved itself, and the 3241 formation is most suitable for the advantages of their own players.

Newcastle's 433 is full of passion, especially when the attack and defense are switched, you will find black and white shirts running like a swarm, what is called an offensive tide, look at the moment of Newcastle's counterattack!

A cutting-edge coach like Eddie Howe is good at learning and willing to humbly absorb the nutrition of the masters of the scumbag, which is different from the coach who became famous in his 60s.

If compared with the giants, in fact, the value of Newcastle's main squad is not high, and most players are not so famous, but Eddie Howe combines these "ordinary people" together, and the degree of smoothness is no worse than that of several giants.

The rise of Newcastle and the growing strength of the central axis are the foundation. Goalkeeper Pope still has room to improve, and centre-back Botman is Newcastle's defensive core and is a real rock. Back-back Guimaraes is indispensable, and striker Isaac will also raise the ceiling for himself and his team.

Newcastle's rise is not what you think, but really only they can challenge Manchester City

Summer transfers operate

As mentioned earlier, some players seem ordinary, but in Eddie Howe's system, they seem to be very useful.

But next season Newcastle will be playing on the fourth line, especially the Champions League, and no one wants to be out of the group stage.

This means that Newcastle still have to strengthen some positions and create conditions for manager Eddie Howe to rotate scientifically.

Big Dan Byrne has played quite well at left-back this season, but the position needs to be strengthened, Byrne has an advantage in size, but it is still difficult to meet a winger who is extremely fast.

In addition to Schal, a high-level centre-back needs to be added, rotating with his partner, Botman.

Even for the sake of financial balance, Newcastle will most likely resist Barca's offensive and will certainly not let Guimarães go.

If the team is built around the Brazilians, the midfield needs to be filled in by young people who are good in attack and defense in addition to Jollington and Verlock.

Saint-Maximin and Almiron have their own characteristics and are very dedicated, but to be honest, if Newcastle want to go to the next level, the upgrade of the forward line is a must.

If Leicester City are relegated, Newcastle may be the first choice to sign Maddison or even buy Barnes as a package.

Prospects for next season

Next season's Champions League expansion, the Premier League may get 5 places, which means that next season's fifth place in the Premier League will also have a high probability of qualifying for the Champions League.

But that doesn't mean Newcastle can breathe a sigh of relief.

Arsenal will certainly regroup, United will get better and better under Ten Hag, Liverpool are set to bounce back after a painful period this season, and Manchester City are as stable and strong as ever.

Brighton, Villa and even Brentford will continue to improve, but the challenge to qualify for the Champions League may be close to strength.

The variables exist in Chelsea and Tottenham, and the two giants may have more problems, while Newcastle ensure that the top five are not big problems as long as they do not have too many problems.

For Newcastle, the pragmatic goal on the pitch is to secure Champions League qualification, Champions League group qualification, League Cup or FA Cup victory.

Off-field goals will be more realistic, completely clearing out the bad debts of the Ashley era, expanding commercial sponsorship, matchday revenue, and freeing up huge space for transfers in the summer window of 2024-25.

If the failure of Arsenal and Liverpool to challenge Manchester City makes us feel heartache and sadness, then wipe away our tears and look forward to Newcastle, only they can break Manchester City's hegemony!

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