Former Newcastle left back Olivier Bernard thinks that Magpies boss Rafa Benitez’s rotation policy has led to points being lost by the Championship side this season.
Writing in his column for Evening Chronicle, the Frenchman says that at least four points have been dropped due to Newcastle not being at full strength because of squad rotation:
“There’s been a couple of games where the Magpies have dropped points – at least four of them – because either concentration levels have slipped, or the starting XI was not strong enough. And that’s partly down to Rafa Benitez’s rotation policy.
“The manager likes to rotate his players, but I think he’s done it a little bit too much at times. In a couple of games, I think he’s rotated one too many players, and that has led Newcastle to concede and then struggle to recover from that.”
It is fair to say then that Bernard is not a fan of rotation. The former full back does however omit some crucial factors. Newcastle are playing a 46 match league campaign and it not possible to keep the same eleven for all of these games. Injuries will take hold, and fitness plays a key role. The more fatigue you gain by playing matches every few days, the more likely injuries will be picked up. Over the course of the season, this could lead to more dropped points than by rotating the squad earlier.
Another consideration is squad happiness. If you know you are not going to play, morale can quickly drop and with a squad as large as the Magpies, it can lead to a big group of unhappy players. Team spirit will not be great. At least with rotation, each player feels he has a chance to play. Time will tell however if Rafa’s strategy pays dividends as the season goes on
