Here are your Newcastle United evening headlines on Tuesday, November 22.
Newcastle United co-owner delivers Saudi Arabia verdict as World Cup minnows beat Argentina
Mehrdad Ghodoussi claims Saudi Arabia were fully deserving of their win over Argentina in Group C. The World Cup minnows shocked one of the tournament's favourites by coming from behind to take all three points.
Lionel Messi had given Argentina the lead after just ten minutes, with his side also having two goals ruled out in the first-half. It did not deter the Green Falcons who scored two second-half strikes through Saleh Al-Shehri and Salem Al-Dawsari.
The winner was a spectacular solo effort, worthy of winning any game of football. Ghodoussi has strong links with Saudi Arabia in business, none more so than the joint ownership of Newcastle United with the Saudi Public Investment Fund.
Eddie Howe's Newcastle transfer dilemma that will be debated until January
Despite World Cup fever gripping the nation, eyes will soon start to turn towards the return of club football and the January transfer window that follows soon after. The winter market can be a tricky one to navigate, especially if you're upsetting the apple cart as Newcastle United are this term.
There is a debate to be had regarding whether Eddie Howe 's side really need to strengthen in the coming months. One on one hand, an extra bit of talent could really aid Newcastle in their European push, while others will argue new additions could upset the near-perfect harmony in the dressing room of late.
Howe admits he is yet to sit down with his in-house transfer committee, with talks scheduled for the coming weeks. The Toon boss did, however, recently admit the Newcastle hierarchy would take a keen interest in the World Cup for scouting purposes.
'A real threat' - Newcastle development has Premier League scared with £60m trump card to come
Eddie Howe gave his players a talk on Newcastle United's past earlier this season as the Magpies boss challenged the group to create their own history. The speech was accompanied by footage from the Entertainers era, but these players do not have to look even that far back for inspiration that they really can upset the established order. That is what Newcastle did in 2012, after all, when Alan Pardew's side broke into the top six.
There is a long way to go, of course, and these are two very different eras, but there are already some striking parallels between the first few months of these campaigns. Both Howe and Pardew set out to break into the top 10 after finishing in 11th and 12th respectively the previous season, but then saw the league open up after Liverpool and Chelsea made mixed starts. Like in 2011/12, present day Newcastle are also third in November with the best defensive record in the league. In fact, this current side are even the first Newcastle team since Pardew's to go 10 games unbeaten in the top-flight.
Newcastle's development under Howe has some of the Premier League's traditional big hitters worried so could they match or even better the Magpies' previous fifth-placed finish after the World Cup break? Dan Gosling, who was the only member of Pardew's squad to go on to work with Eddie Howe at Bournemouth, said it would be 'crazy' to think otherwise.
How Garang Kuol was almost 'lost to the game' as an Australian refugee before World Cup joy
Newcastle United star Garang Kuol may get the chance to show the world what he can do on Tuesday as Australia get their World Cup campaign under way against holders France. The 18-year-old Magpies star earned a surprise call-up to the Socceroos squad earlier this month, despite not starting a single competitive game for A-League side Central Coast Mariners.
Newcastle snapped up the teen sensation before the world got to fully appreciate his talent and will be hopeful he gets minutes on the international stage before he joins the club in January. However, Kuol's story may have been very different had it not been for a small football club based in Shepparton, Victoria, who gave the young attacker and his family a chance after arriving in Australia as refugees.
Kuol's family moved from the Sudanese capital of Khartoum to Egypt when his older brother Alou was just three-years-old, a year before Garang was born in 2004. His father Mawien and mother Antonita worked as dry cleaners, while Antonita also had a job at a fruit factory.
Graeme Souness claims PIF should be 'nowhere near Newcastle United' in World Cup debate
Graeme Souness insists Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund should be nowhere near Newcastle United. The former Magpies manager did not hold back when discussing the ownership of his former club on ITV's coverage of Argentina vs Saudi Arabia at the World Cup in Qatar.
The Toon takeover was scrutinised to the highest degree, but eventually was given the green light, despite Saudi Arabia's questionable human rights record. There were accusations and allegations of sportwashing from across the globe, but once PIF had proven it was a separate entity to the state and piracy issues were ironed out, the Premier League approved the takeover.
"Football is such a vehicle for good and bad," Souness told ITV. "The sportswashing that’s going on in our own country, Newcastle, there’s no way the Saudi’s should have Newcastle United - nowhere near it."
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