Jenas, who played for the Magpies in the Champions League, thinks the buyers will want to revolutionise his former side and bring back the ambition that was lacking under Ashley

Should the Reuben brothers play an integral part in Mike Ashley departing Newcastle United, Ant and Dec might suddenly find they have competition as the Toon's favourite double act.

The bid to take over the club is being chaired by Mohammed bin Salman, who is the defence minister. He oversaw the devastating Yemen attacks that caused a humanitarian crisis.

Mark Jenson is the co-founder of The Mag, now the leading independent website on all things Newcastle United. He speaks out about what it is like to support a team owned by the retail giant.

HELEN CAHILL - CITY CORRESPONDENT: Saudi fund boss Yasir Al-Rumayyan is in the final stages of taking over as chairman of Newcastle United, sources told Sportsmail.

Sources have disclosed that cash has now exchanged hands - with the remainder of the balance due when the Premier League approves the change of ownership.

The prospective new owners - a consortium backed by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund - are on the cusp of tying up a £300m that would rocket the club to the top of the financial charts.

EXCLUSIVE BY MARTIN SAMUEL: The deposit paid by the Saudi Arabian consortium is non-refundable, meaning Newcastle owner Ashley gets richer even if the takeover is not ratified.

England cricket legend Andrew Flintoff has recalled how Newcastle boss Steve Bruce once bailed him out of a sticky situation at a restaurant after his credit card had maxed out.

The versatile left back had impressed for Rennes this season before the coronavirus pandemic halted play, helping guide his side to third in Ligue 1 with 10 matches remaining.

Al-Rumayyan was headhunted n to run Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, which is worth around $330bn and has been funding the nation's push to host a growing array of sporting events.

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: Alan Pardew could only sit and wait for the phone call. There was nothing else to do as the fate of ADO Den Haag's season was debated in a series of video conference calls.

Newcastle United are reportedly prepared to make Mauricio Pochettino one of the best-paid managers in the world, should the impending takeover go through.

EXCLUSIVE BY CRAIG HOPE: Andy Carroll has beaten the mystery injury that was threatening to end his season - but is now sweating on the resumption of Premier League football.

Newcastle's proposed takeover would rocket them into the bracket of the world's wealthiest sports club. Temuri Ketsbaia feels the spending would have to be ruthless from day one.

Haseeb Hameed and Joe Root's admirable resistance proved too little too late as England lost the third Test by eight wickets. Here, Sportsmail's Lawrence Booth takes a look at the talking points.

LAWRENCE BOOTH: England conceded their highest total in 983 Tests stretching all the way back to March 1877. India’s 759 for seven beat the 751 for five by West Indies in Antigua in April 2004.

Joe Root became only the fifth England player to make a hundred in his first innings as Test captain. Root's runs were all the more necessary after another England top-order collapse.

LAWRENCE BOOTH AT EDGBASTON: Alastair Cook already possessed the highest Test score at Edgbaston, having ground down India to the tune of 294 in 2011. His 243 here means he is now fifth too.

Sportsmail's LAWRENCE BOOTH rounds up the best of the stats that came out of the action following West Indies stunning comeback victory over England on day five at Headingley.

England are on the brink of a crushing defeat in the third Test against India at Trent Bridge. Here, Sportsmail's LAWRENCE BOOTH takes a look at the talking points from the play on day four...

CRAIG HOPE IN COPENHAGEN: Christian Eriksen will find himself a marked man against Republic of Ireland on Friday night after angering his opponents last year.

The Liverpool left-back was in the side which were brushed aside 4-0 by the Red Devils in a friendly at Hampden Park in September last year.

Belgium have increased their lead at the top of the latest FIFA world rankings while Portugal have surged into the top five after winning the Nations League last week. 

According to The Sun , Magpies owner Mike Ashley is determined to land a manager with experience in the Premier League and Martinez fits that mould.

The former Ayr player has been selected for next month's European Championship qualifiers against Russia and San Marino after netting 15 goals in his first 12 games for his new club.

KAZAKHSTAN 0-2 BELGIUM: Michy Batshuayi and Thomas Meunier scored as Belgium beat Kazakhstan 2-0 away in their latest Euro 2020 qualifier.

Russia have confirmed they will play their upcoming Euro 2020 Group I qualification matches in their old kit as their new strip inverts the country's flag.

The Belgium international has seen his Real Madrid performances come under scrutiny, most notably against Club Brugge when he was substituted at half-time after conceding twice at the Bernabeu.

Troy Parrott is keeping his fingers crossed that he did enough on his Republic of Ireland debut to be involved in Monday night's Euro 2020 showdown with Denmark.

BELGIUM 6-1 CYPRUS The away side took a shock lead in the 14th minute through Ioannou before Crystal Palace striker hit back moments later from close range.

The Duke of Sussex was reportedly in Buckingham Palace yesterday for a series of meetings to plan his future work in the UK while wife Meghan returned to their son Archie in Canada.

The couple shared a video dancing to Lean Wit It, Rock Wit It to the video platform. Their post comes on the same day People reported they were social distancing in the popstar's native Canada.

The lonely vessel was captured as it passed the broken off remains of a glacier in Disko Bay, Greenland, as it headed towards Canada.

The 26-year-old singer and his 23-year-old wife documented themselves watching the 2008 Batman film Dark Knight on their Instagram Story on Thursday.

Prince Harry, 35, had reached his limit before he and wife Meghan Markle, 38, decided to officially move to Canada, a source said, speaking to US Weekly.

The U.S. Navy Military Sealift Command hospital ship USNS Mercy set sail to LA Monday where the projected number of coronavirus-related hospital beds was five times that of Washington.

Starbucks CEO Kevin Johnson says he wants to provide the chain's 350,000 employees 'economic certainty' as they are to receive a month's pay amid the coronavirus outbreak.

Lynda Jager, from Ontario, began working out when she was 21 - but was always too scared to go to the gym, and would only exercise in her home.

Hailey Bieber has revealed she's relishing her self-isolation with the Grammy winner, 26, admitting the coronavirus pandemic has allowed the loved-up couple to spend some extra quality time together.

Royal fans have launched a campaign to celebrate Archie's first birthday by asking followers of Prince Harry, 35, and Meghan Markle, 38, to donate to charities in Canada, South Africa and America.

Birds are learning new tricks to survive as global warming threatens their habitats, scientists in Canada say.

Royal fans have raised £11,750 for charities in Canada, America and South Africa in just days as part of a campaign to celebrate Prince Harry, 35, and Meghan Markle's, 38, son Archie's first birthday.

The 23-year-old IMG Model and the 26-year-old Grammy winner have been holed up in their $5M, 101-acre Ontario mansion to ride out the coronavirus crisis since March 16

Britain's foreign aid budget soared £623million to a record £15.2billion in 2019, it has emerged. The nation paid £1 out of every £8 in foreign aid given by 29 major countries, figures reveal.

The NBA will begin selling team-emblazoned face coverings with proceeds going to food bank networks across the US and Canada. NBA partner Fanatics will make the masks.

She shared clips to her Instagram Story showing what was going on outside the mansion where she and Justin are holed up.

Mike, who did not want to reveal his last name, has been sleeping in Terminal 5 since lockdown started three weeks ago after being ordered to leave a hostel. Prior to that he was sleeping rough.

Justin Bieber returned to his roots amid COVID-19 by fleeing the U.S. to hunker down in Canada with wife Hailey.

She's currently in Canada with husband Justin Bieber amid the global COVID-19 pandemic.