Eddie Howe's win in the League Cup final for Newcastle United has earned the praise of Richard Keys, with the Magpies ending their 70-year wait for a major trophy - but the pundit has quizzed whether their Saudi PIF owners will only back Howe now that they've won silverware, claiming that the Middle Eastern chiefs 'had lost interest in the project'.
The Saudi group took over in October 2021, sacking Steve Bruce quite soon into their tenure and replacing him with Howe - who immediately changed the club's relegation-bound fortunes with an 11th-placed finish. Howe has since been trusted with a budget in recent years, but last summer saw them have to comply with the Premier League's Profit and Sustainability Rules - leading to a lack of investment.
Keys: Newcastle Owners 'Had Given Up' on Project
The club's owners lost their way, according to the former Sky Sports pundit
Eddie Howe
That, in Keys' eyes, saw the Saudi ownership 'lose interest' in the Newcastle project. Instead of creating a 'mark' on the sport in the same way that Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain did via their Emirati and Qatari owners, Keys believes that spending their funds on boxing bouts, football matches and the Saudi Pro League means they had lost interest.
Eddie Howe's Premier League statistics - Newcastle record by season
Season
2021-22 (27 games managed)
2022-23
2023-24
2024-25 (28 games managed)
Keys wrote in his blog:
"It’ll be interesting to see how far the Saudi’s are prepared to back Howe and his team now. I’ve felt for some time they’d lost interest in the project.
"It was a different when they bought Newcastle. The original idea was to make a mark on the world’s sporting stage like the Emeratis had done with City. And the Qatari’s had with Paris.
"But it seemed to me the money dried up when the formula changed and they started buying sport ‘in’ - staging big boxing bouts in Saudi - football matches - tennis and the like - and setting up their own football league.
"Perhaps now they’ll have another look at their involvement and give Howe the money he needs to get to the next level?"
Howe's men will at least play in the Europa League next season, if they don't qualify for the Champions League via a fifth-placed finish or higher in the top-flight.
And with European football on the horizon, that could see the Magpies spend big money in the transfer window. If they can hold onto the likes of Anthony Gordon, Alexander Isak, Bruno Guimaraes and more, it could be a blockbuster season for the Magpies.
Statistics courtesy of WhoScored. Correct as of 19-03-25.
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