What Has Gone Wrong For Saudi Arabia-backed Newcastle United?

Newcastle enjoyed a meteoric rise during the first 18 months of their new era under the control of the Saudi sovereign wealth fund but the Magpies' progress has stalled this season. Eddie Howe's men are languishing in 10th place in the Premier League with 10 games to go and any hope of the club's first major trophy since 1969 is over for another year. AFP Sport looks at what has gone wrong on Tyneside.

Rules limit spending

In a season in which the Premier League's profit and sustainability rules (PSR) have begun to bite, few clubs have been as affected as Newcastle.

In stark contrast to the early days of Abu Dhabi's huge investment at English champions Manchester City, Newcastle have been limited on how heavily they can lean on their new-found wealth from the Gulf.

Despite qualifying for the Champions League for the first time in 20 years, Newcastle still had to tread a fine line to avoid exceeding PSR after spending more than £250 million ($315 million) in the first three transfer windows under the new ownership.

Chief executive Darren Eales has admitted they may even need to sell one of their prized assets in the summer if they are to invest again in the squad, with Bruno Guimaraes and Alexander Isak among those linked with moves away.

"If we're going to get to where we want to get to, at times it is necessary to trade your players," Eales said after the club posted a £73 million loss for the 2022/2023 season.

Injuries and suspensions

To compound their problems with PSR, Newcastle have reaped little reward from their outlay of more than £100 million in the 2023 summer transfer window.

Most of the transfer budget was splashed on Italian international Sandro Tonali, but he only played 12 games for the club before