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Chief executive to focus on treatment and recovery but could remain in post for up to 12 months until club finds suitable replacement
Newcastle United CEO Darren Eales has stepped down from position after he was diagnosed with a chronic form of blood cancer.
Eales, who arrived from MLS club Atlanta in August 2022, has made the decision after he was told by doctors of the extent of his illness.
The 52-year-old will continue in the job until a successor has been identified and appointed but has revealed he needs to walk away in order to prioritise his health and family.
It is understood that Eales does not need to start treatment until next year and could continue in his role for up to 12 months if a suitable replacement cannot be found
#NUFC CEO Darren Eales is to step down from his position after being diagnosed with a chronic form of blood cancer.He will continue to lead the club’s executive team until a successor is appointed.Our thoughts are with you, @DEalesNUFC. đ¤đ¤
âBeing CEO of Newcastle United is an extraordinary privilege and I am incredibly proud to be part of the clubâs exciting journey, â Eales said in a statement on the clubâs official website.
âHowever, it has become apparent to me that now is the right time to make this decision so that I can prioritise my health and my family.
âIn the short term, it will be business as usual in terms of running the clubâs day-to-day operations, and I will give my full support to a transitionary period that will enable the board to carefully assess and appoint my successor.
âI want to extend my sincere thanks to the clubâs supporters, ownership, players and staff. Iâm proud of what we have collectively achieved and Iâm excited to see whatâs ahead for everyone as the club builds towards a future of sustained success.â
Eales arrived at St Jamesâ Park 10 months after the takeover by Saudi Arabiaâs Public Investment Fund and played a key role in the appointment of Paul Mitchell as Sporting Director earlier this year. He was also crucial in the clubâs scramble to avoid breaching Premier League Profit and Sustainability rules in June and has been a popular figure behind the scenes.
Newcastle United Chairman, Yasir Al-Rumayyan, said: âAll of us who are connected with Newcastle United are very saddened by this news. Our thoughts are with Darren and his family and we send him every good wish for a full recovery.
âOn a personal level, Darren has been a great partner to me and to our fans, players, ownership and staff.
âOn behalf of the club and its owners, I want to thank Darren for his service and dedication to Newcastle United. He has made a significant contribution to the clubâs progress during his time as CEO, helping to build a strong foundation for Newcastle Unitedâs success. We fully understand the difficult decision he has made.
âWe will work closely with Darren to hand over the CEO role at the appropriate moment following a carefully considered search process, and he will continue to have the full support of the board and the Newcastle United family now and in the future.â
Newcastle United have âunbelievable owners who want to do some amazing thingsâ but manager Eddie Howe has once again warned it will take Saudi Arabiaâs Public Investment Fund a long time to close the gap on Manchester City.
Next month, it will be three years since the protracted and controversial takeover was ratified by the Premier League and progress has been slower than many people imagined when Newcastle were bought by the largest sovereign wealth fund on the planet.
Changes to the rules regarding related party sponsorship deals has prevented companies, linked to their Saudi Arabian owners, pumping money into the club to rapidly improve the squad.
That has made it far harder for Newcastle to repeat the sort of rapid growth enjoyed by Chelsea under Roman Abramovich and City under Abu Dhabiâs ruling family, with Newcastle struggling to comply with the Premier Leagueâs Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR) earlier this year.
It led to the unwanted sales of winger Yankuba Minteh to Brighton and homegrown midfielder Elliot Anderson to Nottingham Forest and meant Newcastle did not sign a single player to improve their first team in the summer.
Having spent around ÂŁ415 million on new players since January 2022 â initially to avoid relegation before qualifying for the Champions League at the end of Howeâs first season as manager â the lack of player sales meant Newcastle had to scramble to offload players they would rather have kept.
The board continues to procrastinate over a plan to rebuild and expand St Jamesâ Park and there has also been no progress on a new training ground. These projects all fall outside of PSR limits and it is unclear why things have been delayed.
This weekendâs clash with champions City is a timely reminder that, for all the stated ambition of chairman Yasir Al-Rumayyan to be the ânumber oneâ club in the country, the gulf between the two clubs remains massive, on and off the pitch and Howe insists people need to be patient.
âI can only talk about Newcastle and what weâre doing,â he said. âAnd I think that weâve got unbelievable owners that want to do some amazing things here.
âBut these things do take time and I think there needs to be patience from everybody connected with the club in terms of how quickly we can move things forward.
âI know people will always want things sort of in the here and now, but the likes of the new training ground, new stadium plans, redevelopment of St Jamesâ Park, whatever it is, takes time.
âAnd of course then looking at the team with PSR restrictions, that will take time as well. So, I think as long as from my viewpoint that weâre still trying to move things forward, develop the team in the correct way.
âThereâs still a big ambition, then people can see progress and I think thatâs a really positive thing. But itâs not easy at the level weâre competing against.â
Newcastle are sixth in the table after just one defeat in their five games this season, but they have not been playing well.
And Howe has warned his big name players, like Bruno Guimaraes, Joelinton, Alexander Isak and Anthony Gordon that they need to deliver more.
âThe issue for me is,â explained Howe. âGiven a blank sheet of paper and you say âgo on, write down what your best team isâ, I donât think that would be difficult for me. The problem is, you have to justify your selection, so those players have to be in their best moment and best form.
âWhat you canât do is pick that team if it doesnât deserve to play. Iâm a big believer in rewarding people that are playing well.
âIâm a big believer in thereâs no set team, everyone has to earn their place. If youâre not earning your place, you canât play. So weâre in that moment, early season, where players havenât been in their best form.
âItâs difficult to pick players if theyâre not playing continually well. Iâm at that stage now where Iâm going to have to make some difficult decisions, I think.â
He added: âYour collective performance is always defined by the individuals within it, so if your individual players arenât performing, youâre going to suffer, especially if theyâre in the important areas of the pitch that make the difference.
âWe need some people to step up within the team, and that will have a galvanising effect on the group and thatâs what we need. Iâve got no doubt with the players that are in my mind that they can deliver that. Thereâs no reason why they canât.â