Newcastle United missed out on Brentford winger Bryan Mbeumo as he made his Manchester United feelings clear.
Former Newcastle United manager Alan Pardew has insisted the Premier League “needs” Manchester United challenging at the top.
Rival fans - including Toon supporters - have watched on with glee as English football’s most dominant force continues to diminish. Despite spending £1.7billion on transfers since Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement in 2013, Man United are yet to win the title - a feat they have achieved 20 times.
Liverpool matched their record last season to reopen the argument on England’s biggest club. Newcastle fans - who fought a rivalry with Man United in the 1990s - have enjoyed watching the Premier League giants fall.
Manchester United’s decline
They finished 15th last season and missed out on Champions League football after losing the Europa League final to Tottenham Hotspur. However, the revenue the club generates still allows them to compete for prized players.
Newcastle witnessed this first-hand when news broke earlier this month about Bryan Mbeumo choosing Man United over a St James’ Park switch. There have been suggestions Spurs could hijack the deal as his current manager, Thomas Frank, closes in on a move to North London.
Alan Pardew makes Manchester United comment
But former Toon boss Pardew has insisted Man United is the perfect fit while making a controversial Premier League statement. He told talkSPORT: “Personally, and I don't really carry any favour with Spurs or Man United, I'd like to see him in a Man United shirt. There is something about him that I think looks right at Man United.
“And I think they need him, they're desperate. We need a big, big Man United. We don't need a little Man United who can get turned over. The Premier League needs Man United. Just for the historical nitty-gritty, I want a big Man United.
“We want a big Man United, and everyone else can be big as well, but not quite as big as Man United. The situation could be complicated by it, in terms of the boy getting a better deal at Man Utd and maybe Brentford getting a better deal, in terms of the figures going up.
“So even in Brentford's position, to hold fire wouldn't be a bad thing because you do want another club involved. You don't if you're the buying club like Man Utd are at the moment. They don't want another club to get involved, but sometimes that happens.”
Read More
Alan Pardew relives failed Newcastle United deal
“I remember like Loic Remy (at Newcastle), the deal was done. He's coming to Newcastle. We'd had him online. He'd been brilliant. It was all done now. And then I got Jose Mourinho coming up on my phone.
“He nicked him on the last day. He just rang up to apologise, which was very kind of him, but not really what I wanted to do.”
Continue Reading