OPINION
Newcastle United boss Rafa Benitez was undoubtedly hoping to hit the ground running in Saturday’s season opener against Tottenham Hotspur, but unfortunately for him, it was not meant to be.
The Magpies suffered a narrow 2-1 defeat at the hands of Spurs, with their one goal coming from striker Joselu.
Benitez’ omitted some of the new signings from the starting line-up – including Salomon Rondon, Yoshinori Muto, Ki Sung-Yeung and Fabian Schar – with Rondon coming on with 30 minutes to go.
However, Benitez has been forced to defend his decision to name these players on the bench, with the Chronicle quoting him as saying: “We had to give something to the players that have been training for one month so it was right thing to do. Now we have more time, and everybody has to fight for their place.
“We tried to change something and then we had a chance when Rondon hit the crossbar, but you can see the new players will need some time to settle and understand their teammates.”
The Spaniard is right to defend his decision not to start the new players, and fans must understand why he made such choices in the first place.
These players are bound to make an impact on the team when they get their chance, but they cannot be expected to deliver the goods straight away, as they have not had much time to settle into the team and get used to the playing style.
Rondon is the name that a lot of fans will be hoping will be on the score sheet numerous times this season, but not even he needed to be in the starting eleven this afternoon.
He has not long arrived from West Bromwich Albion and needs time to get used to his new teammates and how his new club works.
Even though they lost 2-1, Benitez was still spot on with the players he opted to start the game.
After all, he has achieved a lot already for the club – so there is no reason why they should not understand the reasoning behind this decision.
