Newcastle's Chairman Wants to Emulate QPR

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The Times July 11, 2008- Mike Ashley wants to share financial load
Kaveh Solhekol, Steve Hawkes
Mike Ashley, the Newcastle United chairman, has laughed off claims that he is ready to sell the club to the Saudi Binladin Group, which is headed by Bakr bin Laden, the half-brother of Osama bin Laden, the al-Qaeda leader. He did admit, though, that he cannot afford to bring the good times back to the club on his own.

“I'm not looking for a Newcastle shareholder in a cave in Afghanistan,” Ashley said. “It's not as if I'm going to go and see Bin [Laden] in a cave in Afghanistan. No doubt when I'm in South America next week, it will be Fidel Castro.”

The Saudi Binladin Group, a construction company based in the Middle East, was said last week to be preparing a £300 million offer for the club. InterMedia Partners equity fund, based in Manhattan, New York, was also said to have been sounded out regarding its willingness to buy out Ashley. “There is absolutely no truth in the rumours of an outright sale,” Ashley said yesterday.

Despite being the 54th-richest man in the United Kingdom, with a fortune of about £1.4 billion, according to the Sunday Times Rich List, Ashley wants to follow the example of Queens Park Rangers, where three of the richest men in England - Flavio Briatore, Bernie Ecclestone and Lakshmi Mittal - have joined forces with a view to transforming the fortunes of the Coca-Cola Championship club.

“The QPR model looks very interesting,” Ashley said. “It's something that Newcastle needs to look at. It's got to be able to compete. Newcastle is not something you make a profit on, you have to enjoy and love it. If we had some multibillionaire that wanted a stake in Newcastle, it will help, but sell the club? It's not the same answer.”

Ashley, who bought the club 14 months ago for £137 million, also denied rumours that he is a Tottenham Hotspur supporter. “It's not true,” he said. “I absolutely hate Spurs and always have done.”

He was speaking out after Sports Direct, the sports retailer that he founded, reported that profits for the year to April had halved after a drop in sales attributed in part to poor weather last summer and England's failure to qualify for the European Championship finals.

Joey Barton is expected to spend up to one more month in prison after being denied early release with an electronic tag. The 25-year-old midfield player had hoped to join in pre-season training with Kevin Keegan's squad, but may not be available until the final days of preparations, so he is unlikely to be ready for the start of the Barclays Premier League campaign on August 16.

Barton's future remains in the balance after he was imprisoned for six months for assault and affray and also given a four-month suspended sentence for attacking Ousmane Dabo, his former Manchester City team-mate. Newcastle have confirmed that they will hold talks with Willie McKay, Barton's agent, when the player is released from prison.

Rich men's games

Billionaire Boys' Club - the men who could get Ashley out of a hole at St James' Park ...

Duke of Westminster (worth £7 billion): The richest property developer in Britain once had a trial with Fulham

Sir Richard Branson (£2.7 billion): Likes a challenge and tried to buy Northern Rock, Newcastle's sponsor

Alki David (£1.5 billion): Greek tycoon who was interested in Coventry City

Sir Philip Green (£4.33 billion): Controls 12 per cent of the UK's clothing retail market - The Times