Newcastle Consortium Supporters Ltd’s Keith Patterson has told Sunderland Echo that Tottenham Hotspur came close to being taken over by the Saudi royal family for £3.5billion deal last year.
He also suggested that the North Londoners blocking the Magpies’ takeover was a breach of anti-competition laws.
The saga regarding Newcastle’s potential takeover by a Saudi Arabian-backed consortium went on for several months before it was finally rejected by the Premier League (BBC Sport).
It was claimed that one of the main reasons the deal fell through was due to Saudi Arabia’s human rights record and accusations of TV piracy.
Some reports have since emerged that the likes of Tottenham and Liverpool lobbied the Premier League to prevent the takeover from going through (Express).
Patterson, a lifelong Newcastle fan, is now set to take the Premier League to court for what NCSL see as potential breaches of anti-competition law, citing Spurs’ takeover talks as evidence.
He is quoted as saying: “Why would Tottenham not want it to happen? I could not understand that.
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“But we have seen information that explains why there is the obsession with Project Big Picture and why there is such a determination to stop PIF investing in Newcastle United.
“Tottenham Hotspur, in a negotiation which broke down in March 2019, approached investors in the region we are talking about – two months before the Newcastle deal was ironed out – to buy the football club for £2.5billion, with a further £1billion in add ons.
“The deal was taken to the investors in Saudi Arabia, by a dealmaker named as Eldridge Investments, and rejected.
“The whole deal totals £3.5billion – Newcastle was set to be sold for one-tenth of that price. I have had that exact same information from three different credible sources.
“That concerns me. People are trying to prevent our deal going through, but were trying to do a similar deal themselves for ten times the amount. But I feel on this alone that fans of both Spurs and Newcastle need to learn this so that they understand what is happening within their club.
“At the very least it adds to the intrigue.
“In August, I wrote that Liverpool and Tottenham were opposed to the deal in my letter to (Premier League chief executive) Richard Masters. Then in November, I get this information. Something is really not right with the whole thing.
“If one or more company tries to stop another entering the market this is anti-competitive.
“Spurs came so close to pulling off a deal but then stood in the way of another? We will find out more with disclosure.”
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