Newcastle United takeover legal battle insider hits back after 'mischievous' Amanda Staveley leak

Shields Gazette and NewcastleWorld editor Liam Kennedy and Newcastle Consortium Supporters Limited director Keith Patterson are discussing Newcastle’s legal battle with the Premier League prior to the 2021 takeover. NCSL sent a ‘letter before action’ to the Premier League claiming its decision to block Newcastle’s Saudi-led takeover was against UK anti-competition law.

Watch the discussion live here

The legalities of Newcastle’s takeover has been brought back into light this week after The Telegraph revealed leaked messages between Amanda Staveley and a representative of former owner Mike Ashley. The messages included requests to promote Shields Gazette articles written by Kennedy about NCSL’s letter to the Premier League and the club’s legal case.

In response to the national reports, Patterson told The Gazette: “I think it is a deflection of the legal mess they find themselves in and it is not coincidence that today we have seen three separate articles offering criticism against our Saudi owners.

“This doesn’t happen by accident and it is a response to try and switch the spotlight from damaging revelations on unlawful “rules” in which dominance has been abused.

“The response we see today is to use people in the media to take a shot at the likes of Newcastle and Man City in order to deflect it away from others.

“People are making mischief with the WhatsApp messages during our takeover process, but I was denied seeing WhatsApps from the other side. I remain convinced I would prove an unlawful process to legitimately prevent our takeover.” Kennedy and Patterson are discussing the situation at length and reflecting on the takeover legal battle via Geordie Journos on YouTube. You can watch live using the link above or by clicking this link.