Newcastle United: seven priorities for the potential new owners - MW

When Kevin Keegan became director of Newcastle in 1992, his first act was to fumigate the training ground. Now, the new consortium that will take over from Mike Ashley is facing the demand for reform in virtually all areas of the club. These should be their seven priorities ...

Make a decision on Bruce's managerial future
Despite some major bets predicting that Max Allegri, the former manager of Juventus, is linked to Tyneside, sources close to the takeover say that there will be no instinctive decisions. It seems that Steve Bruce's work is safe for the moment, even if he knows that Rafael Benítez remains the pretender not mentioned. Amanda Staveley's camp is close to the former Newcastle manager and although it may cost almost £ 20 million to extract the Spaniard - still adored on Tyneside - from his current post in China, these costs will be reduced every passing month.

Given the difficult environment, Bruce has done a decent job this season and deserves respect and a chance to confuse skeptics. Even so, the new owner will wonder if he has the traction to achieve his European ambitions by attracting the main players to St James’s Park.

Rebuild the team
The flawed policy of investing only substantially in players under the age of 25 is considered to have a high potential resale value, which has led to an imbalance of experience in key areas, in particular is to attack . Screening and hiring require a complete overhaul and the upcoming appointment of a football manager - someone who is clearly committed to this role - should begin to address this problem. Removing the entire leave recognition add-on - preventing them from looking for video analytics on transfer targets - would be a start.

The Bruce Bruce team is committed to refreshing, but restricting and demanding quality if it is removed from the default, counterattacking mode, almost guaranteeing the safety of the Premier League but barely affecting the public. Newcastle's healthy track record should dictate that, to provide the player with sound investments, the rules of financial fair play should not impose insurmountable recruitment barriers. Immediately, there was an urgent problem of what to do with the players under contract ending June 30. Among them, the much appreciated 20-year-old midfielder Matty Longstaff - a subject of considerable interest in Italy and Germany - the side rears of Javier Manquillo and Andy Carroll vulnerable to injury. Then there is the future of three bastards, Daniel Rose, Nabil Bentaleb and Valentino Lazaro, to consider.

Reconnect with fans and improve communication
Thirteen years of management of Mike Ashley left supporters disconnected and denied their rights. The need to re-establish and strengthen binding relationships is an urgent priority. No fault of the Club's media group - after all, they work for an overbearing owner - no comments have been made on the club's background music in recent years. Few things are really transparent in football, but in the case of Newcastle, an increase is not only possible but necessary. Reasonable re-engagement with fan groups, politicians and local businesses is also necessary in a town dominated by a football castle located on Gallowgate. Sources show that business plans to help finance urban regeneration and such projects are sure to win the heart and the mind. Ditto, welcoming former heroes frozen by the Ashley regime, including Keegan and Alan Shearer. Chris Mort, the action lawyer for Staveley, who was president of Newcastle, under Ashley; he can certainly advise businesses what not to do.

Commercial boost revenues
When Ashley took charge in 2007, Newcastle’s commercial (non-broadcasting) revenue was on a par with Tottenham’s and only marginally behind Arsenal’s and Liverpool’s. Although the club has recorded an overall operating profit in seven of the past eight seasons, current income from commercial ventures - sponsorships, merchandising, overseas marketing - is almost identical to that commanded 13 years ago. This stasis is highlighted by the most recent set of accounts. These show Newcastle generated £ 26.7m in this sphere, around £ 80m a year less than Spurs. If revenue streams are to start flowing freely once more, ambition must be reignited and the commercial taps turned back on as the club’s global profile is restored.

Create a new infrastructure

Although St James ’Park requires a little updating, it remains among England’s finest stadiums. Unfortunately, Newcastle’s cramped and old training ground is a different story. It has slipped well below Premier League standard and in the north-east alone League One Sunderland and Championship Middlesbrough possess infinitely superior weekday HQs. Might old plans originally proposed by Sir John Hall to transform the derelict Woolsington Hall and its extensive grounds near the City’s airport into a training ground / new academy / luxury hotel complex be dusted down and revived? Whatever happens, appreciable investment, and new ideas, will need to be directed towards an academy arguably punching well beneath its potential weight.

It would help if Newcastle had a proper executive structure. At present they are in the rare position of operating without a board, with Lee Charnley, the managing director, the club’s sole listed director.

The extraordinary lack of debate and delegation characterizing the Ashley era has to end but the many excellent, and dedicated, staff found in every corner of the club, and its charity foundation, must be cherished. Individuals such as George Ramshaw, the seventysomething assistant kitman, are part of a precious fabric and symbolizes Newcastle’s enduring heart and soul. They should all be de-furloughed.

Invest in the women’s team
Becky Langley’s team resides in the fourth tier but a WSL top-flight place alongside Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester City and al has to be the ultimate ambition.

Win a first trophy since the Fairs Cup in 1969
… And along the way revive memories of the exciting football played by Keegan’s entertainers and Sir Bobby Robson’s blue chip brigade.

MW