Gary Neville has suggested that Newcastle’s struggles to attract big-name players to the North East could hinder their progress in years to come.
Ayoze Perez eased the Magpies’ relegation fears on Friday night as the Magpies ended their away win drought at Leicester .
The striker's eighth goal of the season earned the Magpies a 1-0 victory and their first win on the road since December.
It moved Newcastle up to 13th, 10 points clear of the Premier League's relegation zone, having played up to two games more than their rivals with four matches remaining.
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Owner Mike Ashley has often come in for criticism for a lack of investment in the transfer market, and is understood to be actively looking to sell the club.
And though Neville understands why the club’s fans have aspirations to fight further up the table, he has highlighted their struggles to recruit fresh faces.
Neville told Sky Sports : "I don't dispute the size of the club, it's huge and the fanbase is incredible. The stadium is amazing and when I go up there I love it.
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“But there are some big problems. The ownership is one of them but it's also attracting players to the North East of the calibre you need to attract, and it's not just the North East, it's Yorkshire, parts of the North West, players prefer to play in the south of England.
"There is going to have to be a distinctive model change for Newcastle to be successful and get back to where we think they should be in the future, which is challenging for the top six, being one of the biggest clubs in the country.
“They will have to do something completely different because players won't go there and live there for three, four, five years in masses."
