Big Sam Allardyce claims Mike Ashley only bought Newcastle United to make money

Sam Allardyce has slammed Newcastle owner Mike Ashley, accusing the billionaire of only buying the club to make a quick profit.

The ex-Newcastle boss added his weight to Geordie fans' protests over Ashley's regime by saying it is now "crystal clear" the Sports Direct tycoon only ever saw United as a chance to make a "vast" load of cash.

Ashley will today examine seven bids for Newcastle as a deadline for "serious expressions of interest" in buying the club for his asking price of between pds 250 and pds 300 million.

They include a potential buyer from China, the United States and the Middle East.

If Ashley reaches his best price of pds 300 million, he will walk away with a profit of 70 million - after 16 months in which the club has lurched from one crisis to another.

Allardyce has hit out at Ashley saying the money to build a team "never materialised" for him or his successor Kevin Keegan.

The ex-Bolton chief says that he suffered "personal trauma" and "dented pride and professionalism" after being sacked by Ashley in January - and he wants a job back in the Premiership to prove the Newcastle owner wrong.

Allardyce said yesterday: "It is going from bad to horrendous now (at Newcastle)."

Asked if there was a part of him that said: "I am glad I am out of it", Big Sam said: "Yes I do. It is crystal clear now what the motives were for Mike Ashley. It is clear he did buy the club in the hope that he thought he could quickly sell on for a vast profit.

"What I did was not in line with him... I was in it for the long term. I was there for the four year contract and the building of a football club.

"The players didn't materialise because the money didn't materialise to buy the sort of players that the passionate Newcastle fans demand so much. We only had a net spend of nine million.

"Since then I thought Kevin would get that money, but he never did. The continuous sales and players moving in and out in the summer have obviously caused Kevin to think the job was untenable and the club was thrown into chaos.

"Over the years it has declined. They finished 14th the year I took over from Glenn Roeder. When I left we were 11th. There was no danger of relegation. We were 12-13 points from the relegation zone.

"This time last year we had just had the best start to a season for 10 years. So people have lost sight of that. As a manager it dents your pride and professionalism.

"Unfortunately you have to accept it. In terms of apportioning blame you always think about yourself first. when you lose a football match you always blame yourself, you are the one in charge.

"The six months in charge there we worked tremendously hard to put a great back room staff in place but we needed the players."

Allardyce is determined to get another crack at building a club, after the massive success he had at Bolton. He added: "So it is definitely yes to coming back and definitely yes to prove a point on the Newcastle thing. Time has slipped away and I hope I am not the forgotten man."

Asked how he felt after being sacked by Ashley, has said he didn't enjoy Allardyce's style of football, Big Sam added: "For the first month you go through some turmoil personally and you say to yourself is it all worth it.

"The sacrifices are huge. To your personal life and your family. They are massive. But that is what you love doing.

"That is what you have always done all your life it is engrained in you. I hope my record speaks for itself. My record speaks for itself. I was at Newcastle for six months, I left them in 11th.

"When I left Bolton we were fifth, and qualified for the UEFA cup two years out of three and finished top eight or better four years on the trot."

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