Manchester City head to Newcastle United on Saturday evening for a showdown between two of the country's most fervent fan bases, with clubs helmed by the Qatari and Saudi states
Can Eddie Howe get the better of Pep Guardiola on Saturday night?
Can Eddie Howe get the better of Pep Guardiola on Saturday night?(Image: (Photo by Serena Taylor/Newcastle United via Getty Images))
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English football will host a clash of Gulf ambition and deep pockets when Newcastle United collide with Manchester City tonight. A coming together of English football's two richest clubs.
One which has scaled Everest, in the shape of City winning an historic Treble back in 2023. And rivals still attempting to reach the summit of a sport in which the peak of it has eluded them for decades.
Success aside, on the face of it Newcastle and City appear to have much in common. Both have a fanatical fan base, both have fierce ambitions and the means with which to achieve them. And both just happen to be under the ownership of people with the sort of wealth most people cannot comprehend.
When the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF) seized control of Newcastle in 2023, it made the Magpies the richest club on the planet. Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman became the main shareholder, someone controlling a consortium with assets totalling £320billion.
A figure dwarfing the wealth of City owner Sheikh Mansour, who is said to have a personal fortune of £24billion. But despite Mansour appearing to resemble a pauper compared to bin Salman, his willingness to continue spending in the blue half of Manchester has left this weekend's counterpart looking somewhat Scrooge like.
Which is quite an achievement, considering Newcastle have blown more than £650m on new signings since the Saudi takeover. City, meanwhile, have ploughed almost £900m into squad strengthening in that same period of time. This is total spend, not net spend.
Let's not forget Newcastle recouped £135m this summer, following the sale of Alexander Isak to Liverpool. Demonstrating just how much value Newcastle's owners place on raising funds, as opposed to spending them.
Newcastle's determination to hold out for the highest price for Isak, was an example of how keen the club is to keep balancing the books, while giving manager Eddie Howe more money to re-invest in his squad. Like all clubs, Newcastle have to adhere to the Premier League's Profit & Sustainability Rules (PSR).
City and UAE chiefs celebrating the club's four-in-a-row Premier League triumphs
City and UAE chiefs celebrating the club's four-in-a-row Premier League triumphs
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City, on the other hand, head to the north east still waiting to hear the verdict in their case relating to the 115 charges of allegedly breaching league spending rules. Undeterred, Mansour went ahead and sanctioned a £150m spending spree for Pep Guardiola this summer. Having allowed his club to also spend an astonishing £180m in the January transfer window a few months earlier.
In short, Newcastle have been more pragmatic, while City continue to blaze a trail through the transfer market with an attitude that appears priceless. Yet here's the kicker.
Last season these two clubs won one trophy between them. And it wasn't City.
Newcastle won the Carabao Cup, bringing an end to a seven-decade wait for domestic silverware. Guardiola, on the other hand, endured the worst campaign of his manager career. One from which he finished potless, which is not a phrase often associated with him or his club.
So Newcastle hold the moral high ground heading into today's clash. Which also means these two clubs might not have as much in common as we first thought.
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