Newcastle United’s links to Saudi Arabia are obvious.
There is simply no getting away from that, whatever you feel about the fact PIF are the majority stakeholders in the club.
For all the controversy and debate around the takeover, few can doubt it has been a good thing on the pitch for Newcastle.
Indeed, the owners have done a remarkable job in terms of recruitment and have not gone down the superstar route many would have expected when the club changed hands.
Cristiano Ronaldo, after all, was linked with loan moves to St James’ Park following his switch to Al Nassr in Saudi Arabia but nothing of the sort has happened.
Ruben Neves was another having joined Al-Hilal but a temporary switch to Newcastle was ruled out.
Still, that doesn’t mean all deals are off the cards.
Eddie Howe addresses Newcastle potentially doing deals with Saudi Arabia
Manager Eddie Howe admitted to some frustration in the transfer market following the opening pre-season win over Gateshead on Saturday.
When asked about potentially bringing players to the club on loan from the Saudi Pro League, Howe responded (via the Daily Mail): “That depends on if it is the right thing for Newcastle. We’ll always act with our best interests first.”
Difficult to see who Newcastle would loan from Saudi Arabia
With Neves seemingly off the table, it’s difficult to see who exactly Newcastle would loan if they were planning to lean on their Saudi links.
The likes of Ronaldo, N’Golo Kante and Karim Benzema are big names of course but they are just not of the profile PIF have tended to target from a Newcastle perspective.
Given the number of players moving to the Saudi Pro League, it would barely be a surprise to see European clubs looking to buy from there at some point.
Were Newcastle to do it, it would likely be controversial considering the PIF links.
At this point, however, it does not look particularly likely.
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