OPINION
Newcastle United attacker Dwight Gayle pulled back the curtain on the current atmosphere among the players at the club and his comments shows the disruptive effect not knowing their manager’s future is having.
The 27-year-old centre-forward tried to play down the negativity surrounding the continued uncertainty of Rafa Benitez’s future, but his remarks clearly indicated that players were already distracted before pre-season had even begun.
“It is crucial that the boss stays,” Gayle said in an interview with the Daily Express.
“There is a bit of concern that he could go but I am confident he will stay and be with Newcastle next season.”
While the forward shared that he was confident about his manager staying put, his comments about there being concern among his teammates should have the alarm bells ringing.
Gayle goes on to sing his manager’s praises and share that everyone wants him to stay, which was already known, but if there’s already concern at this stage that’s only going to grow as the situation continues.
The Chronicle previously reported that Mike Ashley had instructed managing director Lee Charnley to agree a new deal with Benitez by the time July comes around, which is the right approach.
However the newspaper claims that the manager isn’t looking for a major pay hike, which suggests he’s simply waiting for the club to make its ambitions clear as that’s what he has constantly stated that he needs to know, as seen in an interview with the Chronicle, in order to sign on.
This needs to come directly from Ashley as only the owner can make it crystal clear that he’s willing to do what it takes to see Benitez’s ambitions met, even if Charnley appears to deal with the day-to-day care of the club.
So while it’s nice that Ashley wants to see the manager’s future confirmed before pre-season, as uncertainty will have a negative effect, he needs to personally act now rather than later.
As with the manager’s future clearly disrupting players, based on Gayle speaking out on the matter at this early stage, the owner can’t afford for players to already be hearing alarm bells as it will translate to their performances if not resolved when the season begins.
