Rafael Benitez’s departure from Newcastle United will not affect the Bin Zayed Group’s bid to secure a takeover for the club as their proposal undergoes the necessary assessment, according to journalist Saj Chowdhury.
The BBC Sport reporter claims on his personal Twitter account that he has been told by a source with knowledge of the BZG takeover attempts that Benitez’s impending exit, which was confirmed on Monday, will not impact their efforts to buy Mike Ashley out.
Once again regarding BZG's proposed takeover of Newcastle, a source told me Benitez's departure does not affect its position. So, as it stands, following the last statement in May & according to BZG, the proposal and its suitability is still being assessed.
— Saj Chowdhury (@SajChowdhury) June 24, 2019
He says that this means the proposed offer from the Middle Eastern company is still on the table and being looked at by the relevant authorities and parties.
Opinion
A silver lining for the Toon Army? Not really. Monday will have been a sucker punch to the Newcastle faithful and even talk of a takeover will not help them get over the loss of Benitez. He was so much more than a football manager, helping to galvanise both the club and the community in the north east in all pulling in the same direction. With his departure confirmed, it feels as though the club are back to being a rudderless ship with no leader to guide them. There was an awful lot of resentment towards Mike Ashley before but this has pushed things into the danger zone. Benitez being at the helm helped stem the bitterness around St James’ Park. His exit means that there is a toxic atmosphere on Tyneside once again. The fans can only hope and pray that the BZG, or any other takeover bid, is successful and completed sooner rather than later. Otherwise, this is going to be a summer of huge discontent and possibly the beginning of the end for Newcastle in the Premier League – again.
