Ashley may need to step up boss search

Newcastle owner Mike Ashley’s so-far fruitless search for a buyer for the club means he may have to appoint a new manager and try to quell fan unrest before he is in a position to sell.

Ashley plus vice-president Tony Jimenez and executive director (football) Dennis Wise have been in the Middle East since the weekend searching for a buyer but according to well-placed City sources the trip is in danger of becoming a “wild goose chase”.