The Nigerian consortium in talks with Newcastle United want to bring back Kevin Keegan as manager.

The eight-strong group are willing to pay more than £300million for the club and are eager to get down to talks with Toon owner Mike Ashley, says The Sun.

Chris Nathaniel, who organised a high-profile visit by United star Rio Ferdinand to Nigeria in the summer, has been taken on as a consultant and insists the consortium are deadly serious about their proposition.

He said: "These people are not messing about. They are genuine, highly-regarded businessmen in Nigeria who want to make a deal happen.

"They will bring back Kevin Keegan immediately as manager and there will be £75m made available to buy players.

"The interest in the Premier League in Nigeria and the whole of Africa is huge and buying an English club is seen as the next big step for a football-mad country."