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The manager's voice trailed off.

"I remember walking around the training ground when we came up that initial period," remarked the Newcastle United head coach last week. "It was…"

Howe wasn't becoming sentimental, but considering the work needed to improve the club's dated Benton headquarters following his appointment nearly four years ago.

Newcastle had recently been acquired by a investment group from Saudi Arabia in a multi-million pound transaction.

The club had been labeled the wealthiest in the world by observers, but the situation on the ground was rather different as they fought relegation.

In a proposal to improve the facility a short time after, it was even stated the training complex fell "significantly below the Premier League and perhaps even Championship standards".

The facility has since been modernised with recovery and cold pools, a new canteen, a players' lounge and expanded locker rooms, among other features, but it is the team that has been completely revolutionized since then.

So what has changed since the takeover and why did not the financial power of Newcastle's owners guarantee more achievements and honours?

Further Improvements Required but Progress Will Come'

Matt Ritchie felt it.

He understood what could happen if Howe "took charge" and "possessed attacking talent", after previously working with the manager at Bournemouth.

"Upon my initial joining, I would discuss Eddie Howe and Bournemouth," said the veteran attacker, who represented Newcastle between 2016 and 2024.

"The lads would say, 'come on, drop it, he can't have been that good'. But I'd explain there was complete thoroughness."

"I was so pleased that they got to sample it. Without firsthand exposure, you can't fully appreciate you have never experienced such intensity. It's the attention to detail, the preparation and the drive for betterment - all the things that make Newcastle what they are now."

It has not all been plain sailing, of course, since Howe's appointment or the takeover a few weeks prior.

Newcastle, presently 15th in the Premier League, missed out on a several objectives during a draining summer window and sold forward Alexander Isak to Liverpool for a record-breaking £125m.

The club lack a technical director after Paul Mitchell left in June, following less than a year in the post.

And the delay persists for announcements concerning the future of St James' Park and building of a new state-of-the-art training ground.

But this is a team that ended a seven-decade wait to claim a significant cup back in March after winning the Carabao Cup by beating Liverpool.

They have qualified for the Champions League in multiple recent campaigns - achieving their biggest win in the competition against Union Saint-Gilloise this week - and only Manchester City, Liverpool and Arsenal have picked up more points in the Premier League since Howe assumed control.

"Significant transformation just in terms of the overall atmosphere of the club," added Howe. "Naturally, the squad has evolved. Naturally, teams progress and change over time."

"The way we're working behind the scenes as a football club is totally different but, additionally, if you look around the training ground here, there have been big improvements. That's what the club needed and still needs."

"Further development is necessary, but progress will occur and gradually evolve over time. It's exciting times for the football club."

Attempting to Close Significant Income Disparity

Newcastle have expanded significantly off the field.

Revenue is projected to rise from £140m in 2021 to more than £400m when the club's most recent financial reports are published later this season, while employee count have increased significantly to 550 in recent years.

There has been significant funding in the youth system and the women's team, while hundreds of millions have been pumped into the club to help with day-to-day running costs.

But one query outsiders might be asking is why the financial resources of their Saudi owners hasn't produced greater success.

Though new signings have joined - around £100m net was invested in the summer - this has been a moderately paced development.

"Since the new ownership were extremely rich, theoretically, a lot of people made an assumption that they were going to buy the way to the top," stated a Newcastle fan analyst.

"Certainly, Newcastle have recruited some excellent internationals like Bruno Guimaraes and Sandro Tonali, but the progress of current team members and the signing of players like Dan Burn from the region to strengthen that feeling around the club has been massive and crucial."

Such an strategy has been affected by Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR), which restrict losses to £105m over a three-year cycle, so finding a way to create additional flexibility will be essential for Newcastle.

For context, Manchester United may have endured their worst campaign in more than four decades last season, but the club still generated historic income of £666.5m.

Examining further, Manchester United brought in £333.3m worth of sponsorship revenue and £160.3m in matchday revenue.

Newcastle, by comparison, raised £83.6m and £50.1m respectively in their most recent published accounts from 2023-24.

Acquisition 'Increased' Rivals' Concerns

Manchester United have not always made the most of their huge income streams, of course.

But, traditionally, the sides who invest higher amounts on wages accumulate the most points per game in the Premier League.

Earlier challengers like Manchester City and Chelsea were able to dominate competitors with superior packages before the present regulations were introduced in 2013.

But Newcastle 'only' had the eighth highest salary bill in the Premier League just a couple of seasons ago and the club came mightily close to a PSR breach in June 2024 following years of imbalanced trading.

"I'm not necessarily sure these are unforeseen results of the rules," said a sports financial analyst. "The cynical perspective of the Premier League is that the clubs at the top wished to prevent another City or Chelsea to emerge. This is a way of creating a glass ceiling."

Newcastle are going to have to do things a little differently - and that has been evident since the takeover.

In fact, an unnamed executive previously approached the Premier League on behalf of his club and 10 others amid apprehension Newcastle could enter into lucrative sponsorship deals with Saudi Arabian companies.

He asked that notification was provided of a vote to introduce a short-term ban on related-party transactions just shortly following the buy-out in 2021.

This high-ranking official publicly acknowledged the Newcastle takeover "increased" worries and "prompted teams to demand measures" when he was later questioned by Manchester City's legal team.

Nobody Should Justify Saudi Human Rights Record

The associated party transaction rules have been updated and continue to apply.

But Newcastle's recently appointed chief executive, David Hopkinson, has aimed to find ways to realize the club's "under-realised commercial potential".

That has been expected to close friend Tom Pistore, who collaborated with the Canadian at Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment.

"Our group under his leadership were always trying to focus on how do we keep progressing?" he said. "Status quo keeps you stationary so it was about continuing to be creative in business and partnership relationships, innovation, digital and ticketing."

"As the landscape changed, David was always very progressive with a curious interest in new concepts. Innovative, but not bleeding edge were terms we often talked about in watching someone have the first stab at something and then having a proper evaluation."

Hopkinson, who previously served as president and chief operating officer at Madison Square Garden Sports and head of global partnerships at Real Madrid, wants to position Newcastle "among the world's elite".

That remains the long-term ambition of chairman Yasir Al-Rumayyan, the governor of the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund (PIF) - who hold controlling interest in the club - as well as fellow owner Jamie Reuben.

But a human rights campaigner said "goals and glory are diverting attention from human rights issues" after a historic number were put to death in Saudi Arabia last year.

"This was never just about football," he added. "It's about using the global prestige of the Premier League to cleanse a problematic rights situation."

A political representative was the initial to acknowledge she "would not select Saudi Arabia as the owners of the club".

However, she emphasized supporters were the "last people who get to choose".

"When you make it all about money, which the Premier League have, those with the greatest wealth will end up winning the great clubs like Newcastle United," she said.

"However, nobody ought to defend, stand up for, or rationalize Saudi Arabia's human rights record."