Newcastle boss Hughton: Ashley deserves praise

Newcastle United boss Chris Hughton says club owner Mike Ashley deserves praise for keeping the club afloat.

The Magpies owner, who has spent much of his time at St James' Park firmly in the firing line of a furious fans' backlash, recently pumped a further £25million into the business to help cover running costs.

Newcastle still have an annual wage bill of around £40million, which is massive by Championship standards, despite seeing their income slashed by relegation.

Hughton, whose team is currently five points clear at the top of the table with 14 games to play, said: "That's an indication of where we are at this moment.

"We are a club in this division with a very high wage bill, and that's something we have all been aware of.

"You have got an owner who is still having to put money into the club and that's reassuring because at the moment, what we want to be doing is concentrating on the football.

"There are going to be issues that have to be addressed, and the owner is addressing them."