Newcastle takeover headlines with Rafa Benitez again linked with Magpies return

All the latest Newcastle United takeover headlines including updates on Rafa Benitez, Yasir Al-Rumayyan, and the Saudi Public Investment Fund

Fresh headlines have again linked Rafa Benitez with a return to Newcastle United following a takeover.

Elsewhere, Yasir Al-Rumayyan has discussed the investment 'opportunities' the coronavirus pandemic has presented for the Saudi Public Investment Fund.

Here are your top Newcastle United stories for May 25:

Benitez rumours

Rafa Benitez faced fresh headlines linking him with a return to Newcastle United today.

But it is still believed that such a prospect is classed as premature for the would-be owners of the Magpies - while the current regime suggest they aren't even in a position to make comment.

It all makes the Rafa rumours extremely difficult for Newcastle to shut down but Steve Bruce was as open and honest about the situation as possible when he re-emerged for training last week.

He said then: "You can't avoid it. If - if - it goes through let's see what happens after that.

"I am aware of all the speculation going on and people are hovering over my job.

"But I get on with it until I know different."

Al-Rumayyan on 'opportunities'

Yasir Al-Rumayyan does not want to 'waste' the 'opportunities' the coronavirus pandemic has presented - which perhaps explains why Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF) wants to purchase an 80 per cent stake in Newcastle United at such an unusual time.

PIF and the Reuben Brothers have joined forces with financier Amanda Staveley and the consortium's takeover bid is currently in the hands of the Premier League, who have been carrying out their owners' and directors' test.

While the world has been counting the cost of the pandemic, PIF have been aggressively buying up stakes in a host of western companies, including Carnival, Live Nation, Boeing, BP, Disney and Facebook, as Saudi Arabia continues to diversify its economy.

Last month, Al-Rumayyan took part in a Future Investment Initiative virtual event entitled 'beyond the crisis: technology to the rescue' alongside Larry Frink, the founder of BlackRock, and Tidjane Thiam, the Afrian Union special envoy on Covid-19.

McClaren on working with Ashley

Steve McClaren has revealed he had to 'deal with all the people' around Mike Ashley during his stint at Newcastle United because that was the way the billionaire wanted to run the club.

The former England boss was named as the Magpies' new head coach in June, 2015 and was also appointed to the club's board of directors alongside chief scout Graham Carr and ambassador Bob Moncur.

With the black-and-whites in 19th place in the Premier League and out of both domestic cups, McClaren was sacked just nine months later.

McClaren is one of 11 managers - interim and permanent to have worked under Ashley since he bought the Magpies in 2007.

As supporters await the outcome of the Premier League's owners' and directors' test, which will decide the fate of the club's prospective takeover, the 59-year-old has given an insight into Ashley's hands-off approach.

Inside mid-season reboot

Newcastle club doctor Paul Catterson feels that United will emerge even stronger from the Covid-19 crisis.

The emergency situation at Benton resulted in the club working remotely with players to keep them ticking over during lockdown but other lines of communication also came into play.

Dr Catterson believes that some of the outlets put in place in the last few weeks will aid the club moving forward, not least the increased awareness on the mental health aspect of the squad's wellbeing.

Fan ballot

Newcastle United and all football fans could be welcomed back in vastly-reduced numbers during the second half of the 2020/21 campaign.

That is according to a new report in The Sun on Monday morning, which also claims clubs will not have full capacity crowds at games next season.

The Premier League’s chief medical officer Mark Gillett recently said “‘the public health situation is not going to change in the next six to 12 months”.

And now the suggestion from some quarters is that all games in the top-flight will be behind closed doors until November at the earliest.

Lascelles on closed-doors fixtures

Jamaal Lascelles says that players must brace themselves for the strange prospect of playing Premier League games with no fans.

With the Bundesliga now back under way, fans in England have been able to get a close look at what matches could look like as teams prepare to play behind closed doors.

Some matches in Germany have had a training ground feel to them with dialogue from players and coaches heard clearly on video links while Wolfsburg opted to stream crowd noise around the Volkswagen Arena at the weekend, only to lose 2-0 against Dortmund.

Whether fake crowd noise could be a feature at St James' Park or other top-flight venues after Project Restart remains to be seen.

Vote on contact training

Premier League clubs will vote on proposals for a return to contact training on Wednesday.

Players and managers are to be consulted on the proposals ahead of the 20 clubs meeting as Project Restart plans continue to gather pace amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Results of the latest round of Covid-19 testing, which is taking place on Monday and Tuesday, will also be published on Wednesday.

It is expected that twice-weekly testing will continue rather than be ramped up further, and the proposals will include what to do in the event of a positive test once contact training has restarted.

Government guidelines on contact training stress the need for "meticulous, time and date sensitive, written records of player groups and interactions" to be kept to enable effective tracing should an individual test positive.

It is anticipated that clubs will gradually build up the level of contact, from 'clusters' of two to three players initially, through larger groups of four to 12 before a return to full team training, in line with Government guidance.

Woodman on SJP

Newcastle United goalkeeper Freddie Woodman has revealed St James' Park is the best stadium he has played in during his career.

The former England under-21 international has represented the Three Lions in the under-20 World Cup, has played at Celtic Park during a loan spell at Kilmarnock and has played in Championship grounds across the country.

But none of those stadiums compare to the home of Newcastle United, where he has enjoyed three outings in the FA Cup.