'Upset' Levy fears 'shift of power' at Tottenham after 'massive' development - pundit
Alan Hutton has suggested Daniel Levy is genuinely fearful of Tottenham being "knocked down a peg or two" amid reported opposition to the Newcastle United takeover.
The former Spurs defender, speaking exclusively to Football Insider, admitted it was no surprise to hear the Lilywhites' chairman was against a "massive power" joining the Premier League.
As reported by the Daily Mail (8th October), Levy and Tottenham have led efforts to prevent Newcastle from striking a lucrative sponsorship deal following the successful takeover.
The Lilywhites were also reportedly among a handful of clubs who lobbied the Premier League to stop the takeover going through.
Hutton insisted Newcastle's top-flight rivals would fear "dropping down the pecking order" in years to come.
Hutton told Football Insider's Russell Edge: "It doesn't surprise me that Daniel Levy's mentioned, that it's upsetting him.
"A lot of these clubs, you can see what their fear is. It's about dropping down the pecking order again.
"Tottenham went out, they were one of the top four teams in the country. They have the big new stadium, the training ground.
"But in the actual market, they have not had the backing they want over the last three, four years.
"He's now seeing another massive power coming in. A shift in power, if you want, that's going to knock them down a peg or two. They don't want that.
"That's why he's obviously against it but this is how football is at the moment.
"A lot of these foreign owners with lots of money are coming into the league. They're buying clubs, going through all the checks, passing them.
"Newcastle over the past X amount of years haven't spent a lot of money. That allows them, maybe, in January to go really go for it.
"It's really interesting at the moment. It doesn't surprise me that there are clubs against it."