Rio Ferdinand with new embarrassing comments on Mike Ashley and Newcastle United fans
Rio Ferdinand has been at it again.
The former player turned pundit has embarrassed himself a number of times in the past when it comes to Newcastle United, this time it is a classic.
As usual, Rio Ferdinand siding with Mike Ashley and slagging off the Newcastle fans, though it then gets a lot more complicated…
Rio Ferdinand asked about the current situation at Newcastle United with Mike Ashley and the fans, as well as the ownership of the club and replying: ‘It’s his club and he’s doing what he wants to do. Whether you like it or not, he’s the one that’s put the money up and he’s doing what he thinks is right for the club. Whether the Geordies don’t like it…A lot of them hate him and don’t like him but…Round your money up and take over the club then.’
Yes easy as that, Newcastle fans really letting themselves down by not simply just getting together and throwing £300m-£350m in a bucket to buy their (not Mike Ashley’s!) club.
The arrogance is unbelievable, is that what Rio Ferdinand says to Man Utd fans who are unhappy with the shameful way the Glazers act as owners of their club? Just ’round your money up and take over the club then’….?
It gets worse though because Rio Ferdinand was speaking on his FIVE youtube channel, which promotes his FIVE clothing brand, which is sold exclusively by Sports Direct, owned by Mike Ashley…yes, no conflict of interest there when Rio Ferdinand is supposed to be talking objectively about Newcastle United and (his business associate) Mike Ashley.
You can read the discussion below and it gets really interesting and makes Rio Ferdinand look even more ridiculous because he goes really strongly on what a disgrace it has been that Newcastle United’s development of young players has been such a disaster for so many years. Rio Ferdinand talking about lack of investment and not a good enough structure etc etc. One of Ferdinand’s co-presenters also rubbish Rafa Benitez in the discussion as well, claiming that Steve Bruce has done just as well as Rafa, apart from the ‘last few weeks’ and (according to him) how Benitez had a much better team at his disposal.
A lot of it is nonsense because none of them really know what they are talking about when it comes to Newcastle United. The last few weeks? When the reality is that under Bruce it is two wins in twenty games over the past three and a half months!
Going back to Newcastle United’s totally failing academy for so many years…hmmm, I wonder who has owned NUFC these past 14 years???
It is a classic, Rio Ferdinand is in reality really slagging off Mike Ashley without realising it, for some strange reason. One of the massive reasons why Rafa Benitez wouldn’t stay at NUFC, was because he wanted proper investment in the training facilities and the academy structure, to be given the chance and freedom to get on and make the academy what it could and should be.
It is Rio’s big mate Mike Ashley who has refused to allow a penny to be spent that he hasn’t been forced to on the infrastructure at the club, the likes of the training facilities, the academy and St James Park.
Then just to twist our minds completely, Rio Ferdinand finishes off talking about Newcastle United (read below) with a great anecdote and really nice words about the Newcastle fans, how brilliant they are.
You literally couldn’t make it up!
Rio Ferdinand, Joel Beya and Stephen Howson talking on the FIVE youtube channel:
Joel Beya:
“What’s going on with Mike Ashley? You know what, let me tell you why I rate him. This guy is not moving you know. It don’t matter what anyone says. Since I have been a kid, yeah, it has been Mike Ashley out [from Newcastle fans] and the most you will get is, yeah, he’s thinking of selling the club, but it’s not happening. What does he want to do with it?”
Rio Ferdinand:
“He don’t care what people think.
“It’s his club and he’s doing what he wants to do.
“Whether you like it or not, he’s the one that’s put the money up and he’s doing what he thinks is right for the club.
“Whether the Geordies don’t like it…
“A lot of them hate him and don’t like him but…
“Round your money up and take over the club then.”
Joel Beya:
“[You are a] Bad man.”
Stephen Howson:
“Why does Steve Bruce get no love?
“He’s a Geordie lad and he was doing, the last few weeks not so much…but he was doing a comparative job to what Benitez did there and they loved Benitez for that. And I think Benitez had a better side [than Steve Bruce]. I think he [Bruce] was doing a very decent realistic job at what is a yoyo club unless they stop selling their best players and investing.
“They are a club that annoys me actually. You [Newcastle United] are probably never going to be competing for the [Premier} League and the Champions League, why can’t they invest into their academy properly and create a pathway for young players?”
Rio Ferdinand:
“That’s my biggest point with Newcastle, like, they’ve got that area locked off, all of the north east is basically Newcastle’s because Middlesbrough aren’t in the Premier League, Darlington etc are not in the Premier League. So they have first dibs on all of the talent in the north east.
“Why have they not nurtured more more players into that first team? I don’t get it.
“Whether it is investment, or the quality of that the structure of that process at the club isn’t right.
“If I was a Geordie, if I was a Newcastle fan, that’s where I would be shouting and pointing my finger.
“Not enough has been done with the talent that must be kicking around in Newcastle. It’s impossible to think there aren’t more [good local players who should have been developed].”
Joel Beya:
“It’s a shame because when you look at their stadium, it’s fit for Europe man.”
Rio Ferdinand:
“Aaaah, what a place [St James Park] to play.
“I loved playing there, what a place to play.
“We used to hurt them but it was an unbelievable place to play.
“What a stadium.
“We were beating them one time…and this is how good their fans are, the Geordies yeah.
“I have to just tip my hat to them. We were beating them something like 6-1 and they were still singing their songs for their club and clapping their team.
“It was unbelievable and all our players were in the changing room, saying did you hear that? Did you hear what was going on there.
“Like anywhere else they are getting booed off. Unbelievable.”
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