In a week that Newcastle United qualified for the Champions League for the first time since 2003, talking about former owner Mike Ashley feels like needless negativity.
His ownership of Newcastle is a thing of the past, with the club already reaching extraordinary heights just a season and a half after his prolonged departure.
However, something Ashley said exactly eight years ago is particularly interesting.
Newcastle survive on the final day of the season
The date was May 24th 2015, and John Carver’s Newcastle were taking on Sam Allardyce’s West Ham, knowing that a win would ensure Premier League survival.
There had been an incredible slump following Alan Pardew’s departure, with Carver dragging the club towards the Championship during a turbulent tenure. He claimed to be the best manager in the world, but that was not the case.
Fortunately, he got the three points he needed. Moussa Sissoko scored the opener, followed by one of the most famous goals in Newcastle history. Jonas Guttierez, a man who ‘knows the true meaning of survival’, confirmed victory with a goal in front of the Gallowgate, just months after he was given the all-clear from testicular cancer.
It was a beautiful story that remains etched in the club’s history.
Mike Ashley made Newcastle Champions League claim in 2015
While fans inside the stadium were buoyant, they were less aware of what owner Mike Ashley had said before kickoff.
The Cockney had never spoke to the media, but gave his first ever interview as owner to Sky Sports ahead of Newcastle’s biggest and last game of the season.
Relegation was still a possibility, but Ashley was asked what the future holds for the club under his stewardship.
“Definitely to win something,” he said.
“By the way, I shall not be selling it until I do. [The club is not for sale] at any price. When I say win something, if we ever get in the position that we get a Champions League place that also qualifies as winning something.
“To be categorically clear, I’m not going anywhere until we win something.”
Eight years later and Newcastle have done it
Ashley’s words were extremely worrying at the time. Every fan wanted him out, but there was no chance of silverware on the horizon. And there was certainly no chance of finishing in the top four and qualifying for the Champions League.
In fact, we were relegated 12 months later.
Fast forward to the present day, and everything has changed. Ashley was not a man of his word, selling the club despite no silverware or Champions League qualification. He lacked the ambition to take the club to those heights, and now he has seen just how easy it could have been.
In just their first full season in charge, the Newcastle owners have seen the club play at Wembley in the Carabao Cup final, and now we are going to be competing in the Champions League next season.
For so long, Newcastle United was a sleeping giant that Ashley had no intentions of awakening.
But it is roaring now, with the club’s heart beating louder than ever.
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