The story of Newcastle United's first year under new ownership – and the big stadium challenge facing the club

Twelve months ago, a new era started at Newcastle United amid unprecedented scenes outside St James’s Park.

Thousands of fans converged on the stadium on the day the club was taken over by a consortium led by Amanda Staveley.

It was a historic moment. Mike Ashley, finally, had sold up, and Staveley promised to “create a consistently successful team that’s regularly competing for major trophies”.

Staveley and her team were at a hotel in a leafy suburb of the city on the day of the takeover waiting for the go-ahead to travel to St James’s Park.

The financier – who had suffered a series of setbacks over the previous couple of years as she tried to buy the club from Ashley – was advised by security to wait until the next day given the huge number of supporters outside the stadium.

At the hotel, Staveley was emotional looking at videos and photographs on social media of the scenes outside the ground.

The reality of what had finally happened – and the job it was bringing so many fans – was hitting home.

Speaking to the Gazette, Staveley said: “I’m so touched – the whole thing has just been incredible.

“You don’t feel you deserve that. You understand the responsibility you’ve taken on, and we’re not going to let people down, but also I’m not going to make promises I can’t keep.”

The club has come a long way in a short space of time, yet the building job, in so many ways, is only just starting.

There are some solid foundations thanks to the work of Eddie Howe and his staff on the training pitch – and the executive leadership now in place.

The immediate priority late last year was strengthening the team, and the squad is almost unrecognisable thanks to an extraordinary £200million-plus spend in the last two windows.

Howe, appointed last November with the club winless and 19th in the Premier League, has built a fiercely-competitive team which presses high up the pitch plays on the front foot.

The diligence of Howe and his backroom team was the antidote the team, which lacked a clear identity under Steve Bruce, needed after a dismal start to the campaign.

Newcastle’s home game against Brentford tomorrow is a reminder of Howe’s first game. The club dropped to 20th in the table after a 3-3 home defeat to Thomas Frank’s side. Howe, of course, wasn’t on the touchline after testing positive for Covid-19.

"We have come a long way,” said January signing Dan Burn in the summer. “Since the takeover happened, we have grown.”

Staveley has brought Newastle United Women, previous run through the Newcastle United Foundation, into the fold. The team has played a game at St James’s Park in front of a crowd of more than 22,000.

The club has also recruited well at the executive level. Darren Eales and Dan Ashworth have been appointed as chief executive officer and sporting director respectively.

Work is also underway to improve the club’s outdated training ground.

But one of the most symbolic moves cost the least amount of money. Soon after the takeover was completed, a cherry picker was hired so St James’s Park’s windows could be cleaned.

The stadium badly needed an internal and external makeover following years of under-investment, and the cleaning was welcomed by fans unhappy with peeling paint and damp toilets. Also, the Alan Shearer statue was moved on to club land.

So far, so good. However, there are bigger challenges ahead.

Co-owner Mehrdad Ghodoussi has stated the club’s aim to expand St James’s Park, which is far from easy following the sale of land at Strawberry Place to developers by Ashley.

Speaking to The Athletic last season, Ghodoussi said: “We’ll definitely look at expanding it. We're working with the council to see what we can do. There are a lot of things that need to happen first, but that’s the way forward.

"If we can get it to 60 or 65,000 thousand, and we’ll look at every possibility.”

The club is also looking at sites for a brand-new training ground. One potential site is next to Newcastle Racecourse, owned by David and Simon Reuben.

United’s Academy, which has brought through the likes of Sean Longstaff and Elliot Anderson in recent years, also needs investment.

Staveley pledged to improve communication in the wake of the takeover, and this is a work in progress. Eales and Ashworth, it’s hoped, will soon speak to journalists about their respective jobs – and the challenges facing them.

Ultimately, the aim is to bring Champions League football back to St James’s Park – and win trophies. This was yesterday reiterated by chairman Yasir Al-Rumayyan in an open letter to fans.

Burn, rejected by Newcastle at a young age, used to watch European games at St James's Park as a child with his family, and July’s friendly against Benfica at the Estadio da Luz gave him a taste of what it would be like representing the club on the continent.

“When I was a kid I watched Newcastle in the Champions League,” said the defender, signed from Brighton and Hove Albion in the summer. "It's where we want the club to get back to. It was a taste of what could be.”

Bruno Guimaraes was sold on a move to the club after speaking to the club’s new owners, who must work within the Premier League’s Profit and Sustainability rules.

Asked about those discussions, the midfielder said: “In the seasons coming, the objective is to be in the Champions League – and eventually to win the Champions League.”

Fans know that the club is most likely years away from Champions League football.

But that doesn't matter. They endured 14 years of Ashley’s unambitious ownership – and they’ve got so much time for the club’s new direction.