Newcastle United are now seemingly on the road to recovery, but there is a long way to go after falling so far, and no doubt mistakes will be made along the way.
What the new owners of Newcastle must ensure however, is that they do not make the kind of mistakes which put the club into decline, as happened on these five occasions:
Selling Chris Waddle
In the 1980s, Newcastle United were a club just ticking along and it cost them dear. The first big loss was Chris Waddle, who went to Spurs for £590,000, a fee which was set by tribunal and considered too low by then-manager Jack Charlton.
“I wish I could buy a Chris Waddle for £590,000,” said Charlton.
The fee was less important than what the sale said about Newcastle though. Explaining why he chose not to stay on Tyneside, Waddle said: “It would have been cruising. I wanted a challenge.”
Waddle’s departure precipitated the departure of Peter Beardsley in 1987 which precipitated the departure of Paul Gascoigne in 1988. All three had ambition beyond a club which was ticking along. And it cost Newcastle dear. In 1989, assessing the wreckage, a journalist at the Times wrote of Newcastle: “It is hard not to conclude that over the years they have been one of the worst run clubs in football.”
READ MORE: Joelinton's classy message to Newcastle United fans after being serenaded off the pitch
Hiring Kenny Dalglish
In January 1997 Kevin Keegan resigned, having never come to terms with losing the title to Manchester United the season before. Newcastle tried to hire Bobby Robson as a replacement, but he was loyal to his club, Barcelona. Having failed to lure their top choice from Spain, Newcastle hired Kenny Dalglish. Few were thrilled.
The team was fourth when Dalglish arrived but finished the season second on goal difference: Champions League qualification. Not bad. Then came the great dismantling: out went good players and in came inferior players; in came players on the verge of retirement; in came Dalgish’s son. The team finished 13th.
Dalglish was replaced with Ruud Gullit and the club has never recovered. Robson worked wonders when he belatedly arrived, but what might have been.
Sacking Bobby Robson
Robson arrived in 1999 and Newcastle finished 11th in his first partial season. Then 11th in his first full season.
After that they finished fourth and qualified for the Champions League. The next season they finished third and the season after fifth, which meant no Champions League, though they did get into the UEFA Cup. However, at the start of the following season, Newcastle lost two and drew two. They had Europe to play in, but Robson’s card was already marked.
Apparently some players said he had lost the team. In hindsight – though hindsight was not really needed – the problem may have been some of the players rather than the manager. Freddy Shepherd sacked Robson and said it was like shooting Bambi. Robson left and Newcastle finished 14th.
Signing Michael Owen
A few weeks before Newcastle bought Michael Owen in 2005, the Guardian ran a story headlined: “Where did it all go wrong for Owen?” Ominous.
There were many who were eager to get the deal done with Real Madrid though, including Alan Shearer, who said at the time: “It's costing me a fortune in phone calls to Madrid. Of course, I'd love to have Michael here. He's a top-quality player who can really improve us.”
Yet a week before he signed for Newcastle, Owen said he wanted to stay at Real Madrid and if he could not stay in Spain then he wanted to go to Liverpool. Not great PR.
Fans welcomed him, but knew he did not want to be on Tyneside. The money was the long-term problem though:£17m, reportedly using future income from Northern Rock sponsorship, and it ended in relegation.
Selling to Mike Ashley
Bad decisions were compounded. If Newcastle had not faltered in the 1990s and had not spent money in the wrong places, 14 years of decay may have been averted, but it was not.
“English billionaire businessman” is how the Associated Press described Mike Ashley. It sounded much more promising than it turned out to be.
In 2007 he bought a 41.6% stake, buying shares from the Hall family. Sir John Hall said at the time: “Mike Ashley is a major player in the sporting world and I am convinced that he is the right person to take my place and take the club forward. I am sure he will be good for the club and its loyal fans and indeed for the region.”
That, as it turned out, was incorrect.
