Eddie Howe refuses to rule out Newcastle transfers from Saudi Arabia but claims ‘we don’t have an advantage’

EDDIE HOWE admitted Newcastle may look to Saudi Arabia in January to solve their injury crisis after being given the green light. 

But the Magpies boss said it is “strange” that the spotlight is on the Toon after Premier League clubs voted this week against a ban on related-party loans. 

It means Newcastle will be free to sign players from Saudi clubs who are also owned by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund.

Howe is without a host of injured stars and is eyeing up a move for former Wolves midfielder Ruben Neves, who moved to Saudi Pro League side Al-Hilal this summer. 

Al-Hilal are one of four Saudi sides owned by the Public Investment Fund along with Al-Nassr, Al-Ittihad and Al-Ahli, where the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, N'Golo Kante and Riyad Mahrez play.

But Howe insists they DON’T have an advantage over rivals. 

He said: “You say Newcastle’s favour… the majority of Premier League clubs own other clubs around the world, so it’s not solely on us. 

“It’s the same for everybody. We’ll potentially be allowed to recruit from a league, just like every other Premier League club can as well. 

“There’s no advantage in my eyes. I found it strange that the focus has been solely on us. Every club has a right to vote how they want and it hasn’t gone through so it’s not just about us.”

Howe also admitted that he may be forced into the January transfer market because of the number of players crocked. 

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On top of Sandro Tonali’s 10-month betting ban, he is without Sven Botman, Callum Wilson, Harvey Barnes, Dan Burn, Jacob Murphy, Matt Targett and Elliot Anderson. 

Neither are expected back in the foreseeable future, though Fabian Schar, Miguel Almiron and Alexander Isak are all expected to return for the visit of Chelsea on Saturday. 

Kieran Trippier is also back available having withdrawn from England duty because of “personal reasons”. 

But Howe said: “January was not a window that we were looking to invest in. 

"Certainly we're going to have to be reactive I think because we've got injuries in different areas of the squad. 

“It would only be a reaction to the injuries we have, and whether we need to recruit because the majority of our players would be back in January, at this moment in time we don’t know.”