Magpies confirm identity of bidder

The Newcastle board today confirmed that St James’ Park Group Limited, a consortium backed by Polygon, is one of the parties to approach them regarding a possible offer for the club.

The news comes after Magpies chairman Freddy Shepherd challenged the Jersey-based Belgravia Group and US hedge fund Polygon, which have been repeatedly linked with moves for the club, to make their moves public.

Shepherd used yesterday’s brief annual general meeting in London to confirm talks with Belgravia are ongoing and reveal that Polygon, which was last week reported to have launched a successful takeover in conjunction with the United Bank of Switzerland, has requested access to the company’s books.

A statement from Newcastle United PLC this afternoon confirmed: “The board wish to reiterate that they have not accepted any proposals for the company from any party, nor is any due diligence being conducted on the company.

“Therefore there can be no certainty that an offer will be made, nor as to the terms on which any offer would be made.”