I can't say I have sympathy either, but it's understandable. Not many people would walk away from multi-millions for the sake of looking a little bit noble for a couple of hours. And managers face arbitrary sacking almost their entire working lives, whether they are doing well or not.
I wouldn't put it past Ashley to have done the numbers and decided that compensation plus the costs of a new manager and his demands for investment is actually more expensive than a trip to the Championship. It's clear he doesn't give a tinker's cuss for the Toon, and might have decided to let them decline for good.
Any new manager of calibre - or David Moyes - will be holding his feet to the fire in negotiations. He probably hates that and might refuse out of pique.
I agree, but at the same time, he's hardly a pauper is he? And unlike us mere mortals, a PL footie manager getting the sack for woefully failing at their job not only makes them an automatic millionaire; it proves absolutely no barrier to being re-employed a few months later on another fat contract.
These days many managers leave "by mutual consent" which is just a sacking with a negotiated pay off. If Brolly Face had any sense (or balls - or both) he'd realise that he was getting nowhere here and say to Ashley "let's talk".
So he might leave with only £2m instead of £5m. Boo fucking hoo. If he's prepared to risk his mental and emotional well being for some extra dosh then he deserves everything he's got coming to him. But he shouldn't be dragging Newcastle or its fans down down with him in a fit of pique.
