Newcastle reportedly want manager-player combo which would cost £34m-a-year

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Mohammed Bin Salman has pockets deeper than a Christopher Nolan caper.

And, with Newcastle United on the verge of being not only taken over but transformed by a Saudi Arabian billionaire, the days of cut-price bargains and short-term loan deals could be about to come spectacularly to an end at St James’ Park.

According to Sky Sports, the newly-moneyed Magpies are prepared to offer Mauricio Pochettino a stunning £19 million-a-year contract, which will make the ex-Tottenham Hotspur boss the third-best paid manager in the world.

Le10 Sport, meanwhile, reports that Napoli centre-back Kalidou Koulibaly will be paid £10 million-a-year if he agrees to become the first marquee signing of a bright new era on Tyneside.

But the pay-packets offered to Pochettino and Koulibaly look like pocket change compared to what Philippe Coutinho takes home at Barcelona.

Marca state that Barca are desperate to cash in on their £142 million millstone this summer. No wonder, with Coutinho’s £25 million annual wages proving to be a rather sizeable drain on the resources at an already cash-strapped Camp Nou.

Mundo Deportivo reports that Coutinho, pining as he is for the Premier League, would jump at the chance to join Newcastle if his former Espanyol coach Pochettino is handed the reigns.

A game-changing double deal would set Bin Salman back a remarkable £34 million-a-year altogether. Not that even this would scratch the surface of his fortune.