Newcastle United‘s chief executive Darren Eales sounded a warning to the club’s supporters by admitting the star names could be sold in an effort to meet Premier League rules.
Eales’ warning came as the Magpies revealed accounts showing revenue of £250million – a 39 per cent increase – but with a loss of £73.4m, largely due to £153m spent on new players.
The Premier League’s Profit and Sustainability Rules permit clubs to have a loss of no more than £105million over a three-year period.
Owners can bankroll £90m of the total as they attempt to grow their business, while only £15million can be lost of the club’s own finances.
As a consequence, Newcastle’s spending power under their Saudi Arabian ownership is restricted, despite arguably being the richest club in world football.
Newcastle United chief Darren Eales (left) admitted that the club may have to sell one of their key players if offered enough money
Bruno Guimaraes could be one of the stars Newcastle may be forced to sacrifice to reinvest
Alexander Isak would represent another of the players Newcastle could make a profit on
The rules require the club to increase its revenues to reinvest to a greater extent, with Eales having highlighted the difference in the £250m brought in by the club to the £710m received by Man City.
He admitted this could potentially lead to the sale of one of the club’s big-name stars to give greater room to reinvest into the squad and continue their aim to be an established top six side.
‘If we’re going to get to where we want to get to, at times it is necessary to trade your players,’ Eales said on Thursday.
‘It is counter-intuitive and part of the inherent system of PSR that there is an incentive to trade your players, if you want to re-invest.
He added: ‘For example, you have a £50m player you can sell and you bring in another player of the same value. You might say, what’s the point in doing that?’ he began.
‘But, under FFP, if you sell a £50m player and bring in an identical one at £50m on the same wages, but amortise over five years the player you are bringing in, that’s only £10m a year, so you are creating £40m of headroom. That’s the reality of the FFP model.
‘We have seen lots of examples. Coutinho at Liverpool and they brought in Allison and Virgil van Dijk. Grealish going from Aston Villa and they have reinvested. Declan Rice at West Ham.
‘It’s just the…