Many Newcastle fans in turn point to the £11bn of annual trade the UK does with Saudi Arabia - including being one of the world's largest sellers of arms to the kingdom - and ask why football should be held to a higher standard.
Indeed.
But there are other threads for that.
Just over a year later, Newcastle bin Salman (I wish they would) with their bottomless pockets, fielded 9 British players in beating Manchester United, who fielded .... 3. Both Newcastle goals were scored by British players. I wish I could enjoy a Newcastle victory as I used to when they were admittedly more occasional instead of confining almost all my satisfaction to the fact that Fergie Time lost.
As for the above quote, which passed me by a year ago, it is quite possible to deplore the level of trade with the Saudi regime, including the arms trade AND their takeover of Newcastle United. There need be no conflict of interests over that and nobody has ever suggested that Newcastle fans are any smarter than any others (except for myself, of course). You might expect most of them to think that, because the alternative is too much for them to bear, even if they cared. They are famous for their loyalty, not their wisdom - or their (un)dress sense.
