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Robinho, Eto’o or Johnson? Which example will Newcastle follow with their newly acquired wealth?

Almost overnight, Newcastle United have become the richest club in the world, but how will the immediate future pan out and what can they learn from previous big-money takeovers.

Newcastle United's £300million takeover by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund begs the question: how quickly will the club's fortunes change?
Manchester City, Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea received massive cash injections and are now three of the biggest clubs in the world.
But was their arrival at the top table instantaneous or more of a gradual process?

We look at their takeovers and that of Anzhi Makhachkala to see what the short-term future might hold for the Magpies.

Manchester City

In 2008, Sheikh Mansour took over the blue side of Manchester and a club that were trophyless for 32 years. They had been in the shadow of Manchester United for years and in League One as recently as 1999.

Just a few weeks into the season, Mansour and the Abu Dhabi Group agreed the takeover and on the same day the club signed Brazilian superstar Robinho for £32.5million. By the end of the month the prospective takeover was complete.
They spent £118 million in their first couple of transfer windows, capturing striker Jo for £21million, midfielder Nigel de Jong for £16million and winger Craig Bellamy for £14million. Players that would go on to become club legends, Vincent Kompany and Pablo Zabaleta, were also purchased in the new owner's first season.
Mark Hughes was appointed in the summer of 2008, a couple of months before the takeover happened. He kept his job for the 2008/09 campaign, delivering a 10th-placed finish and reached the quarter-finals of the UEFA Cup.

However, in December 2009, Hughes was relieved of his duties and replaced by current Italy manager Roberto Mancini.

Chelsea

Now one of the most famous owners in the world, Roman Abramovich bought Chelsea in 2003 for £140million.

At the time it was one of the most shocking takeovers and also the most expensive in British history as he took the reins from long-time chairman Ken Bates.
Abramovich was at the helm for the 2003 summer transfer window and his first signing was right-back Glen Johnson for £6million. Other signings during his first season were Hernan Crespo, Damien Duff, Claude Makelele, Juan Sebastian Veron, Adrian Mutu, Scott Parker, Wayne Bridge, Geremi, Joe Cole and Alexey Smertin. Quite a shopping spree.

Manager at the time Claudio Ranieri had been in charge since 2000 and had done a good job. The Russian billionaire stuck with Ranieri for his first season as owner and they reached the semi-final of the Champions League and finished second in the Premier League.

However, Ranieri was dismissed in May 2004 and replaced by Jose Mourinho who went on to win the title with the core of the Italian's team in 2005 and 2006.

PSG

Qatar Sports Investments took over in the French capital in 2011, taking ownership of a club that did not exist until 1970. They transformed the club from being one of the biggest in France to one of the biggest in the world in a matter of months.
In the first year after the takeover, £200million was spent on transfers including those of Javier Pastore for £37million, Thiago Motta and Kevin Gameiro.

These captures were relatively tame in terms of what followed the next season, with Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Thiago Silva coming through the Parisian door. David Beckham also joined, sending interest in the club sky-high.

Performance-wise, PSG finished second in Ligue 1 but sacked manager Antoine Kombouare half-way into the 2011/12 season. Carlo Ancelotti was installed as manager in the new year and led the club to the title in 2013.

Anzhi Makhachkala

A decade ago, Russian top-flight team Anzhi were taken over by Russian businessman Suleyman Kerimov.
An incredible list of signings followed, including Samuel Eto'o and World Cup winner Roberto Carlos. Eto'o signed for a fee believed to be around €28million and on a world-record salary.
Dutch manager Guus Hiddink was appointed and other significant arrivals included Christopher Samba and Yuri Zhirkov.
They managed a fifth-placed finish under Hiddink, although he only took over in the February.
The club went on to do fairly well domestically and competed in the Europa League on multiple occasions but ultimately the investments were unsustainable.
Kerimov cut Anzhi's annual budget by two-thirds in 2013 and the club are now in Russia's second tier.

READ MORE: Bookies have their say on Newcastle moves for Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappe

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