Newcastle United manager Steve Bruce has ordered his players not to use ongoing takeover speculation as an excuse as they prepare to return to Premier League action.
The Magpies welcome Sheffield United to St James' Park on Sunday, their first taste of competitive action since they won 1-0 at Southampton on March 7.
They will do so with owner Mike Ashley and the club's fans still awaiting a decision from the Premier League on a largely Saudi-funded £300 million (Dh1.36 billion) takeover bid brokered by Amanda Staveley with a second potential buyer, American Henry Mauriss, having tabled his own offer.
That could have major repercussions for Bruce and his players, but the 59-year-old has told his troops to focus on football and nothing else.
He said: "We can't influence anything that's happening above us at boardroom level.
"What we can't do is make it an excuse. There's obviously something rumbling along, we're all aware of that, and let's just focus ourselves on the game on Sunday, the game on Wednesday, the cup-tie the following weekend.
"Let's not make it a distraction or an excuse, let's get stuck into it and see where we can finish."
The Magpies head into the game sitting in 13th place in the table and eight points clear of the relegation zone, but top-flight survival remains the overwhelming priority.
Bruce said: "Look, we've still got a lot to do, in my opinion. We've got to secure our Premier League status - that has been my objective since I walked through the door, that's absolutely paramount for a club of our size.
"We've got ourselves in a decent position, that's all it is. We've got nine to play, we've got five out of the bottom six to play, so it's all to play for, as they say.
"We need to have the intensity of what the Premier League brings. We have to mentally be ready.
"What we've seen with the Bundesliga is that it started off very slow but over the last few weeks the intensity seems to have picked up so it might take some time to adjust."
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The Mike Ashley era at Newcastle
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2007/08: Premier League position: 12th. FA Cup: 4th round. League Cup: 3rd round. Top scorer: Michael Owen, 13. Managers: Sam Allardyce, Nigel Pearson, Kevin Keegan. Synopsis: the first season of the Mike Ashley era sees the new owner sack Allardyce and, much to the delight of fans, bring back Kevin Keegan for his second spell as manager. An unbeaten seven-game run in March/April secures the club's top-flight status. But cracks were already appearing between Keegan and Ashley over the club's direction. Getty -
2008/09: PL position: 18th, relegated. FA Cup: 4th round. League Cup: 3rd round. Top scorer: Michael Owen, 10. Managers: Kevin Keegan, Chris Hughton, Joe Kinnear, Alan Shearer. Synopsis: complete chaos all season. Keegan walks out in September due to club's transfer policy and would later win £2 million in damages from the club after winning a case for constructive dismissal. Kinnear is brought in as a temporary measure but is forced to leave due to heart problems in February. After Hughton's second stint as caretaker, Alan Shearer is appointed for last eight games. But even the club's record goalscorer cannot rescue dire situation and Newcastle are relegated. They won just seven out of 38 games and Ashley puts club up for sale during a catastrophic campaign. -
2009/10: Championship position: 1st, champions. FA Cup: 4th round. League Cup 3rd round. Top scorer: Andy Carroll, 19. Manager: Chris Hughton. Promotion sealed at the first time of asking under the likeable Hughton. The team finishes with 102 points - 11 clear of West Bromwich Albion, losing only four games all season. -
2010/11: Premier League position: 12th. FA Cup: 3rd round. League Cup: 4th round. Top scorer: Kevin Nolan, 12. Managers: Chris Hughton, Alan Pardew. Synopsis: Hughton is sacked in December, despite the team sitting comfortably in mid-table, after securing impressive wins over Aston Villa, Arsenal and local rivals Sunderland. Pardew, whose last job was at then third-tier club Southampton, is the surprise replacement. Local hero and top scorer Andy Carroll is sold to Liverpool despite Pardew saying he was not for sale. Getty -
2011/12: PL position: 5th. FA Cup: 4th round. League Cup: 4th round. Top scorer: Demba Ba, 16. Manager: Alan Pardew. Synopsis: the most successful season of Ashley's reign after the team secured a top-five finish and a place in the Europa League. The likes of Ba, Yohan Cabaye and Papiss Cisse prove quality signings and Pardew wins Manager of the Year award. Ashley, though, still manages to enrage the fans by renaming Newcastle's St James' Park ground the Sports Direct Arena, after his sportswear company. Getty -
2012/13: PL position: 16th. FA Cup: 3rd round. League Cup: 3rd round. Europa League: quarter-finals. Top scorer: Demba Ba and Papiss Cisse, 13. Manager: Alan Pardew. Synopsis: Pardew signs eight-year contract, as team enjoys decent run in Europa League that is ended against Benfica in the last eight. League form is disastrous, though. Key striker Ba sold in January after Chelsea trigger £7 million release clause. Forced into January panic buying to try and secure top-flight status as French players Mathieu Debuchy, Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa, Moussa Sissoko, Yoan Gouffran and Massadio Haidara all join with varying degrees of success. Getty -
2013/14: PL position: 10th. FA Cup: 3rd round. League Cup: 4th round. Top scorer: Loic Remy, 14. Manager: Alan Pardew. Synopsis: controversial pay-day money lenders Wonga take over as shirt sponsors as, to widespread disbelief, Joe Kinnear returns to the club as director of football. Team is reliant on the goals of on-loan striker Remy as no money is spent on new signings after the previous campaign's expenditure. Fan unrest against Pardew grows. Getty -
2014/15: PL position: 15th. FA Cup: 3rd round. League Cup: 5th round. Top scorer: Papiss Cisse, 11. Synopsis: Pardew, who had lost backing of the fans, leaves job to take over at Crystal Palace in new year. His Tyneside-born assistant, John Carver, takes over dream job. It does not go well as the team goes on miserable run of eight straight defeats and only secure their top-flight survival after beating West Ham 2-0 on the final day. Getty -
2015/16: PL position: 18th, relegated. FA Cup: 3rd round. League Cup: 3rd round. Top scorer: Georginio Wijnaldum, 11. Managers: Steve McClaren, Rafa Benitez. Synopsis: former England manager McClaren proves a disastrous appointment as the club slump to the foot of the table and he is sacked in March. Champions League-winning manager Benitez is brought in with 10 games to go. Despite three wins and three draws in their last six games, the team are relegated for the second time under Ashley. Getty -
2016/17: Championship position: 1st, champions. FA Cup: 5th round. League Cup: 4th round. Top scorer: Dwight Gayle, 23. Manager: Rafa Benitez. Synopsis: the vociferous support of fans helps persuade Benitez to stay on in the second tier. Once again, promotion was sealed at the first time of asking. Magpies edge out Brighton to title on final day of the season after beating Barnsley 3-0 in front of a bouncing St James' Park and the Seagulls concede a late goal to draw with Aston Villa. Getty -
2017/18: Premier League position: 10th. FA Cup 4th round. League Cup: 2nd round. Top scorer: Ayoze Perez, 10. Manager: Rafa Benitez. Synopsis: Supremely organised and hard to beat under their Spanish manager, Newcastle finish in the top half of the table, despite a run of one win in 10 matches at the end of 2017. The season ends with a superb 3-0 win over Chelsea as Ashley released a statement thanking Benitez for his "magnificent achievement". The former Valencia, Liverpool and Real Madrid manager agrees to remain for another season. Getty -
2018/19: PL position: 13th. FA Cup: 4th round. League Cup 3rd round. Top scorer: Ayoze Perez, 13. Manager: Rafa Benitez. Synopsis: Another mid-table finish as the goals of Perez and loan signing Solomon Rondon help steer the club away from relegation. Despite the club-record £21m signing of Paraguayan attacker Miguel Almiron in January, and the unwavering backing of the fans, Benitez grows increasingly frustrated at what he perceives as club's lack of ambition. A 4-0 win at Fulham on the last day of the season proves his last match in charge as heads for a new, lucrative job in China. PA -
2019/20: PL position before league suspended due to coronavirus: 13th. FA Cup: quarter-finals. League Cup: 2nd round. Manager: Steve Bruce. Synopsis: Fan fury over the exit of Rafa Benitez and apathy at the appointment of Steve Bruce, who leaves second-tier Sheffield Wednesday to take over at his boyhood team, is clear as attendances drop to their lowest for eight years. The club transfer record is smashed again when they pay £40m for striker Joelinton, who goes on to score one goal in 25 games. Newcastle reach their first FA Cup quarter-final since 2006 before the season is suspended due to coronavirus. News emerges in April that Ashley is close to selling club for around £300m to a Saudi Arabia-backed consortium. Getty
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The unscheduled break in proceedings has allowed several players to recover from long-term injuries, including first-choice keeper Martin Dubravka, although brothers Sean and Matty Longstaff, fellow midfielder Matt Ritchie and striker Dwight Gayle are all doubts.
Matty Longstaff's situation remains a concern with the 20-year-old out of contract at the end of the season and Italian side Udinese having already registered strong interest, although contract talks on Tyneside are ongoing.
Bruce said: "I've had a couple of conversations with him since we've been back and purely from a football point of view, we're all desperate for him to stay.
"We have offered him a fantastic deal, in my opinion. We hope that he accepts it."
And as for playing in front of an empty St James' Park on Sunday due to the cornanvirus, Bruce added: "Some football is better than none at all so I'm all for getting started and that can only be a good thing.
"There's no doubt having the crowd behind us plays a big part but we're all in the same boat so we have to adapt like everybody else."
