Last modified on Thu 15 Apr 2021 14.47 EDT
The Saudi crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, warned Boris Johnson in a text message that UK-Saudi Arabian relations would be damaged if the British government failed to intervene to “correct” the Premier League’s “wrong” decision not to allow a £300m takeover of Newcastle United last year.
Johnson asked Edward Lister, his special envoy for the Gulf, to take up the issue, and Lord Lister reportedly told the prime minister: “I’m on the case. I will investigate.”
The message stemmed from an attempt by a consortium led by the sovereign wealth fund, the Saudi Public Investment Fund, to buy Newcastle from its current owner, Mike Ashley.