​Concerns about Newcastle United’s owners could be driving several star players to leave St James’ Park this summer, according to former Manchester City financial adviser Stefan Borson, who spoke exclusively to Football Insider. Borson has raised alarm bells about the ownership model of PIF, which became the controlling owner in October 2021 after a £305 million takeover and has recently been linked with selling a minority stake. Fans, however, are growing frustrated with how the club is being run, having already seen Anthony Gordon depart for £70 million and the chance to replace him with Victor Munoz slip away.
Adding to the turmoil, reports indicate that Sandro Tonali and Lewis Hall are pushing for exits, while Bruno Guimarães is also heavily connected with a move away. Eddie Howe could face an exceptionally tough 2026-27 campaign if the owners fail to back him adequately this summer, with the manager already under considerable pressure.
Borson described the situation as a red flag for Newcastle’s owners pulling back investment. After missing out on Champions League qualification, finishing 12th in the Premier League last season, and securing a last-minute front-of-shirt sponsor, he sees several worrying signs. “There’s clearly an issue generally in the club. The players clearly want to leave. There’s definitely something going on with the Saudis in terms of them pulling back investment. And you can see that from the front-of-shirt deal they ended up having to do with KNOX. So things are not great there, clearly. All of the momentum that they built up with the Champions League and finishing really well in the league, all of that’s dissipated. And it’s a really challenging situation they’ve got now this summer,” he told Football Insider.
The mounting disruption at the club has led to calls for PIF to oversee a signing spree while halting an exodus of players. With Howe’s job potentially under threat as 2026-27 approaches, the Magpies will be hoping for a stronger summer to stabilize the squad and the project.