Although current Newcastle chairman, Mike Ashley, accepted a deal to sell the club to the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund back in April, the takeover has yet to happen.
Any hopes both parties may have had of finally shaking hands look to have been stifled further by the Premier League, with The Sun noting that they understand that the Premier League’s legal team have sent a series of questions to the prospective new owners to answer.
Despite the forensic probing of certain issues, namely the pirating of live match broadcasts from Qatari-owned broadcaster, beIN Sports, and the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in their embassy in Turkey, the Saudi-led consortium have vehemently denied that they will walk away from the deal.
Furthermore, per The Sun, they remain confident that the Premier League will, eventually, approve their bid.
At present, everything remains in limbo for the Magpies.
It’s clear that if the sale goes through, Newcastle, by virtue of becoming the English top flight’s richest club, will have money to spend and can target some of European football’s top available talent.
Until the paperwork is signed, sealed and delivered, however, the thought of joining the continent’s elite will remain just a pipe dream.