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“Football,” said the former Celtic manager Jock Stein, “is nothing without fans.” And that is the very real fate Newcastle United are facing under the ownership of Mike Ashley. The billionaire businessman, who also owns the discount sportswear chain Sports Direct, has used and abused the Premier League club for over a decade, but this summer his unpopularity on Tyneside has hit new heights.
In alienating and undermining his antithesis – man of the people manager Rafael Benítez – Ashley risks turning supporters away in their droves. And a fan-led movement – If Rafa Goes, We Go – has sprouted from social media to protest Ashley’s perceived chronic lack of investment in the club he bought for £134m in 2007. The movement’s message is simple: a failure to back Benítez sufficiently in the transfer market and provide him with the training facilities he deems necessary in order to commit his long-term future to the club, will result in a mass cancellation of season tickets and a boycott of all Newcastle-related merchandise.