Aston Villa still have £ 100million transfer advantage after Newcastle takeover
Newcastle United is bursting with cash following its takeover by a Saudi cash-backed consortium.
But Aston Villa fans shouldn’t be scared just yet.
The Magpies will join clubs seeking to break the established order at the top of the Premier League.
Only five different teams have won the elite trophy in the past 17 seasons, Leicester City the anomaly.
Villa, City, Everton, Tottenham Hotspur and Wolverhampton Wanderers are among the teams that have brought the usual suspects together for a place in the top four.
Villa is back in the Premier League and billionaire owners Nassef Sawiris and Wes Edens have spent enough money on transfers to expect a return to Europe soon.
Newcastle, now 80% owned by the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund, which is estimated to be worth around £ 320bn, will aim to become one of football’s elites.
But they have a gap to fill until they get there.
The Magpies became obsolete under Mike Ashley and seemed content to survive in the Premier League on their second promotion to the top flight in 2017.
They are 19th with three points after seven games and their immediate priority will be to get out of relegation before even thinking of spending a single penny on transfers.
Video unavailable
But when the window opens, they have a way of getting up to the level of those in and around the top half, not to mention Liverpool, Manchester City or Chelsea.
Villa’s team are worth around £ 282million according to figures from the International Center for Sports Studies Football Observatory.
That’s £ 100million more than Newcastle, which can take years to revamp their squad and add the quality required to be challengers for a place in Europe.
We want your point of view, Villa fans. You can get even more involved in our Aston Villa Live coverage by signing up to unlock a host of additional features – such as commenting on and joining the discussion on all of our stories, as well as participating in special Q&A where you can correspond directly with our Villa writer Ashley Preece on the latest news and discussions on transfers from Villa Park and beyond. Just click here to get started.
It could very well happen, in fact it probably will.
But the feeling is that it will mean Newcastle’s new owners will have to put everything in place and not leave on a Man City-esque tram dashboard.
Indeed, Dean Smith has shown that even against “elite” teams, his team can still do the trick.
Just a few weeks ago, Villa traveled to Manchester United and won 1-0 against a talented side and after a summer of spending.
Villa will be watching developments in Newcastle with interest, but for now there is no immediate danger to their prospects of returning to Europe.
It can come later.
What do you think of the takeover of Newcastle? Give your opinion in the comments section …
Read more: Villa ‘plots’ for £ 25million transfer
Read more: Grealish comments on Villa after question about town