Matt McNulty/Getty Images

 

Newcastle United’s owners, the Saudi Arabian sovereign wealth fund, could be eyeing a takeover of a bigger club in the Premier League in the future, with whispers about Chelsea and Liverpool as options, according to the Independent.

 

Saudi Arabia’s PIF are the majority owners at Newcastle and there have been renewed question marks of late over how much state control there is over the Magpies.

 

Newcastle though may not be the club that the country’s sovereign wealth fund ultimately wants to own going forward.

 

 

There are suggestions within the game that PIF is actually eyeing the takeover of another Premier League club, a bigger name than Newcastle.

 

Whispers claim that Chelsea and Liverpool could be possible targets for PIF to take control of.

 

 

PIF would need to dispose of its large stake in Newcastle to be able to take forward a move for another Premier League club.

 

La Liga giants Barcelona could also be on the table in some form, if the club’s financial issues mean the members owning the whole club cannot continue and a partial stake sale is considered.

 

 

On the pitch, Newcastle have struggled to keep up their rate of progress, not being helped by the Premier League’s PSR and associated party transactions rules.