‘Got lucky’ - Simon Jordan fires final swipe at Amanda Staveley for Newcastle United takeover
Newcastle United celebrated four years since the Saudi-backed takeover earlier this week.
Former Crystal Palace owner Simon Jordan could not resist one final swipe at Amanda Staveley for her role in Newcastle United's takeover.
Tuesday marked four years since a Saudi-backed consortium paid £305million to buy the Magpies from Mike Ashley. The event triggered scenes of pandemonium around Tyneside, with thousands of supporters celebrating outside St James’ Park.
PSR restrictions have thwarted Newcastle from becoming the next Manchester City or Paris Saint-Germain but significant progress has still been made. Champions League qualifications and silverware were a pipe dream when PIF bought the club in October 2021.
Simon Jordan reflects on takeover
Ex-Palace chief Jordan infamously insisted the takeover was “deader than a dead thing from deadland” four years ago - and was soon made to eat his words. While reflecting on the deal, he praised former Toon co-owner Staveley, but could not resist one final swipe.
“Ten minutes after saying that, I got a text that the Saudis have copped to piracy and agreed to pay beIN Sports £1billion in compensation,” he told talkSPORT. “The moment I heard that I said, ‘Oh my God, they’re going to do this deal’. Well done to Amanda, she’s a hustler and she gets deals done. Fair play to her. She had a right to put me in my place and that’s what she tried to do.
“At the time I was very solid on why they wouldn’t get through the door because piracy was at the centre of it and the Premier League was having none of it because it was their product that was being hijacked. The moment they changed and copped to the piracy, which is what they did, all bets were off and of course I got made to look like a fool.
“She got lucky (with Newcastle) but she put herself in the way of being lucky. She has a Rolodex that people would die for and that’s why she gets to the centre of deals like Tottenham now and fair play to her.”
Why Amanda Staveley chose Newcastle United
Speaking on the High Performance podcast, an emotional Staveley responded to a fan with why Newcastle was her No.1 choice. She said: “I went to Newcastle because the fans are just so incredible. They really are, so leaving was the hardest thing I’ve ever done and took a long time to understand.
“You have to do what’s right for the club. PIF are going to be an incredible partner for Newcastle, and the Reubens. So it is left in very safe hands. There’s just so many good people with great hearts who put so much into that club, the community and everything about it.
“For me, it was a privilege. Every day I would go into work thinking ‘God, I am so lucky to do this job’.”
Amanda Staveley confirms football ambitions
As quoted by the BBC last December, Staveley - linked with a possible move for Tottenham Hotspur - admitted her desire to return to the football arena. She said: "First of all, I think all we can do is thank the amazing Newcastle community and the founders for all the support that we had and continue to get.
"It's so hard to move on from a club that's amazing. We could never move on from Newcastle and we never will. But yes, we're looking at a number of investment operations. We can't say too much at the moment because of you know, rules around it. But we will be able to talk about it, hopefully in the not-too-distant future."