Newcastle United were BLANKED by the Premier League's 19 other clubs for an extraordinary meeting called this week.
The Daily Mail says Newcastle were not included in an extraordinary meeting between their 19 top-flight rivals as the Premier League explained the decision to approve the club's £305million Saudi-led takeover.
There has long been strong opposition to the deal by the likes of Manchester United, Liverpool, Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur.
One top-flight executive says it all comes back to the "green-eyed monster" and "self-interest", with Newcastle's owners promising significant investment in their pursuit of silverware.
However, Premier League chief executive Richard Masters and chairman Gary Hoffman have now addressed their member clubs on the matter.
Insiders have said that United, Spurs and Everton were the most vocal on the call, with a belief among others that their anger centred around the prospect of increased competition for Champions League places.
And there were questions from some clubs why Newcastle had not been invited onto the call, although the point was made that an open conversation would have been difficult had they been present.
"This is mainly an issue for the bigger clubs, although there are concerns over the immediate impact on the relegation battle," an executive from one side explained. "They are nervous that precious Champions League places have suddenly got harder to come by. A lot of the smaller clubs are pretty relaxed about it."