How the Saudi takeover got me through lockdown...but ultimately broke my heart
On the 14th April, the news broke on Sky Sports that there had been a £300 million pound bid accepted from the Saudi PIF, Reuben Brothers and Amanda Staveley to acquire Newcastle United.
For a brief moment, I left the dystopia we had all been living in for a little over a month. I was filled with genuine excitement for the first time in a while. The cans were in the fridge, local hero was blasting through the household. There was hope.
For thousands of fans, I imagine the reaction was much the same. At a time when the pandemic was at its worst, Newcastle fans had a momentary escape.
There was something to look forward to; hope and ambition for the future.
It was something to read, talk and think to think about away from the pandemic. When the world was filled with depressing stories and it seemed to be only getting worse, Newcastle fans had something to at the very least, distract them.
But that’s why the ultimate failure of the takeover, announced on the 30th July hurt so much.
In a flash, all the hope, excitement and ambition that had distracted us from the events of the last few months disappeared. We were left to deal with the pain that ensued.
Sadly, the takeover will only ever be a distraction. It seems as though it will never materialise and has resulted in a ‘what might have been?’ situation for the fans.
However, we have a lot to thank the Saudi PIF, the Reuben Brothers and Staveley for giving our city hope in such horrific circumstances, even though it ended up amounting to nothing.
We can only hope that they get their wish and are able to to transform this club the way they had planned in the near future.
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