Newcastle United dealt painful Mike Ashley reminder ahead of PSG clash

Newcastle United have been dealt a painful reminder on one of the biggest days of the club’s history.

Tonight, the Magpies will play their first Champions League home game in over 20 years, something fans have dreamed about for as long.

It’s an achievement which felt impossible under the club’s previous regime. Mike Ashley’s 14 year tenure of United was one most would rather forget. With minimal investment, it seemed the businessman didn’t want success and instead used to club solely for his personal gain.

One example of this is when St James’ Park was temporarily renamed Sports Direct Arena after one of Ashley’s other ventures. In 2011, Ashley changed the name of the iconic stadium because apparently the name wasn’t “commercially attractive.” This was met with widespread criticism and protest until St James’ Park was eventually reinstated following the club finding a main commercial sponsor.

And now the name is back to haunt fans.

On the TNT Sport app, tonight’s historic match between Newcastle United and PSG has the ‘Sports Direct Arena’ listed as its location.

Yes, really.

One fan took to social media with a screenshot of the upcoming match with the caption: ‘Someone needs to do a hell of a lot of explaining…’

It’s perhaps not the reminder fans wanted this close to kick-off, but it also serves as a reminder of how far the club has come.

Mike Ashley and the Sports Direct Arena are now a distant memory... as soon as someone changes that listing.