In modern times, money has become the most influential factor in the football. The influx of money in the sport has definitely promoted various infrastructures and has enhanced higher-quality competition but it has also created a huge disparity between private and state-owned clubs. It has also challenged the ethics of financial fair play but there is nothing no one can do about it.
In an attempt to regulate the financial fair play, Premier League proposed a temporary ban on loan of players. The proposal, put forward at the end of last season, prevented Premier League teams from taking players on loan from other clubs under the same ownership in January.
The temporary ban will only apply to incoming loans, not outgoing. The proposal needed two-third majority votes from Premier League clubs to be passed. The minimum number of clubs therefore needed to pass the temporary ban was 14. The loan ban was proposed as a temporary measure until a concrete solution could be agreed before the summer transfer window.
The voting took place at a shareholder meeting on Tuesday at The Churchill Hotel in London. However, reports from BBC news revealed that a total of 13 Premier League clubs voted in favour of the temporary ban, falling one vote short of the required.
As a result, the proposal failed to be passed. It is reported that 7 clubs including Newcastle, Manchester City, Chelsea, Sheffield United, Wolves, Nottingham Forest and Burnley voted against the ban.
This means that Newcastle having a majority stake of 80% by the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia (PIF) is now in a position to loan players from the four Saudi Pro League clubs also owned by PIF in the upcoming window in January.
PIF also owns majority stakes in the Pro League’s “big four” clubs namely Al-Ittihad, Al-Ahli, Al-Nassr, and Al-Hilal. These teams have some high-profile names in their squad including Karim Benzema, Sadio Mane, Ruben Neves and Neymar and Cristiano Ronaldo, who will now have a chance of play for the Magpies this season.
As a results, discussion broke out on Twitter exposing the monopoly of these wealthy clubs. A certain video meme went viral on Twitter that showcased Newcastles’s potential signings from the RSL.
The video clip depicts a scene from the Avenger’s Endgame which sees the Avengers and their allies arrive at the battlefield through ring portals, in preparation to fight Thanos. This entire video clip was edited to depict Newcastle’s situation.
The meme video clip portrayed Thanos as the Premier League giant whereas Captain America was showcased as Newcastle United. In a attempt to fight against the Premier League, it showed that suddenly portals opened up that was referenced as the Saudi Pro League and from those portals many Avengers came forward to assist Newcastle in the fight.
These Avengers are portrayed as Saudi players like Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema, Firmino and Ruben Neves.
However, this news is a blessing for the Newcastle manager, Eddie Howe. NUFC have a long list of injuries heading into the January window which includes Sven Botman, Callum Wilson, Elliot Anderson, Harvey Barnes, Jacob Murphy, Dan Burn and Matt Targett.
Moreover, new signing Sandro Tonali is banned from playing for 10 months due to breaches of rules on betting. In this scenario, loans from the RSL is definitely a relief for the manager.
Ruben Neves has been widely mentioned as a major potential target with the Portuguese international currently playing for Al-Hilal. Sadio Mane might also get another chance to shine in the Premier League. Fans are also anticipating the return of arguably the biggest superstar playing in the Saudi Pro League, Cristiano Ronaldo in EPL. Others such as Karim Benzema, N’Golo Kante, Roberto Firmino, Aleksandar Mitrovic and Aymeric Laporte will also have a chance to play for PIF-owned team.
Not only Newcastle, 11 of the 20 Premier League clubs have connections to other clubs through their owners. Manchester City can loan players from the City Football Group – which consists of 12 worldwide teams, including current LaLiga leaders Girona.
This financial Monopoly is a heavy burden for the financially weaker clubs of the League. It not only destroys their morale but also makes the League extremely one-sided. Now it is up to the Premier League to try and find strict rules of financial regulation as early as possible.
