Are you Saudi in disguise? Newcastle are set to turn out in GREEN and white next season, with new away kit to be launched following £305m takeover backed by the Gulf state’s Public Investment Fund
- Newcastle are set to turn out in the green and white of Saudi Arabia next season
- Sportsmail can confirm the new away jersey carries the Gulf state’s colours
- The club has insisted there is no connection between PIF and the Saudi state
Newcastle United are set to turn out in the green and white of Saudi Arabia next season.
Sportsmail can confirm the new away jersey, designed by kit suppliers Castore, carries the traditional colours of the Gulf state, whose Public Investment Fund owns 80 per cent of the club.
Newcastle’s crest, as well as the trim of the neck and sleeves, have been coloured green on an all-white backdrop, bearing a striking resemblance to the shirt of the Saudi national team.
The strip is likely to attract criticism from opponents of the ownership, who had to satisfy the Premier League there was no connection between PIF and the Saudi state before their £305million takeover was approved in October.
However, the club will see the design as a chance to increase revenue streams via shirt sales in Saudi, whilst also representing their majority owners.
It comes on the back of head coach Eddie Howe warning that Newcastle’s spending power will be impacted by financial rules this summer.
Premier League Newcastle will turn out in the green and white of Saudi Arabia next season
Sportsmail can confirm the new away jersey for 2022-2023 carries the Gulf state’s colours
Sportsmail reported last month that a transfer budget of £60-80million plus player sales has been mooted within the game.
The Magpies were Europe’s biggest spenders in January, investing £94m in five players in what was the first transfer window under Saudi-led ownership.
The new regime have stated their ambition to compete with the likes of Manchester City and Liverpool at the top of the Premier League. But their New Year splurge, coupled with no extra revenue having yet been generated by way of commercial deals, means that the club will operate with caution this summer.
Howe said: ‘With Financial Fair Play, we have restraints and we have things that we have to work within.
‘We can’t just go out and spend money on players like maybe teams could have done in the past, and totally change their squad within one transfer window. That is not an option for us.
The kit bears a striking resemblance to the Saudi Arabia national team’s official strip (left)
The club has strongly and repeatedly insisted there are no links between the Public Investment Fund, the sovereign wealth fund that owns 80 per cent of Newcastle United, and Saudi state
‘The more money you spend in one window, the more it impacts your ability to then spend in windows beyond. The rules are there to govern the game properly and we have to follow suit, so that does impact what we can do this summer.
‘But it doesn’t mean that we’re totally without ambition. We’re well aware that we have to change the squad and we have to make improvements, but it’s going to be a difficult balance.’
Howe, though, rejects the suggestion that supporters have been misled with regards the ambition of the new owners.
‘No, not from the vision that was sold to them, because the club will get there,’ he said. ‘I am a believer in that the club will get to where it wants to be. The time it takes to get there, I think that is something no one can predict.’
Newcastle’s focus will be on signing a goalscorer this summer, with doubts over the fitness of Callum Wilson and potency of Chris Wood.
Shortlists are being drawn up and, among the names in attacking positions, Sportsmail understands Everton’s Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Benfica’s Darwin Nunez, Leverkusen’s Patrik Schick, Alexander Isak of Real Sociedad and Reims teenager Hugo Ekitike have all been discussed.
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