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George Bennett

Darren Eales maps out his key priorities as he gets to work as Newcastle United's new CEO

Newcastle United’s new CEO Darren Eales has vowed to grow commercial revenues in order to help improve matters on the pitch.

The Magpies have previously outlined their ambitious bid to become a ‘global force’ in the game, since the Tyneside club were purchased by a consortium made up of Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, Staveley’s PCP Capital Partners and the Reuben brothers’ RB Sports and Media in October 2021.

Newcastle bought Bruno Guimaraes, Kieran Trippier, Dan Burn and Chris Wood during the January transfer window. Eddie Howe has added further this summer with the signings of Nick Pope and Sven Botman, while Matt Targett’s loan was converted into a permanent deal.

They look set to break their club record with Alexander Isak set to sign for a fee in the region of £50million. However, Newcastle must safeguard themselves against Financial Fair Play rules and Eales believes investment off the pitch is key to providing the club with the funds to succeed on it.

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“On the business side, it’s going to be about growing the commercial revenues,” Eales told NUFC TV. “We know that in a Financial Fair Play environment, it’s crucial that we grow those revenues because that gives us the ability then to feed that into the team on the pitch.

“So trying to holistically set the strategy and give every department their autonomy to go and achieve what we are all trying to do together. I’m almost really a facilitator to try and orchestrate that.”

Eales believes transparency is the best way of achieving efficiency both on and off the pitch. He hopes to communicate with those closest to the club before building his strategy alongside the owners.

“The most important thing for me is listening so I want to talk to the staff, I want to get a sense of the club because I’ve just come in here, and I’ve only started this week and I don’t want to have my preconceived ideas,” Eales revealed.

“I want to hear from the employees, the supporters, from ownership to be totally sure that we are all in the same direction when we put that strategic plan together.

“That’s number one and number two is collaborating with the board on that vision and on that strategy. And then as we go to implement it, for me it’s about, can I pull everything together across the club to help everyone.

“I spoke about the football side, so with Dan [Ashworth] and Eddie [Howe], my aim to help provide them with the resources they need and the support they need to put the best team they can on the pitch.”

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