Match of the Day pundit Ruud Gullit has backed Rafa Benitez’ tactics in his side’s 2-1 loss to Chelsea on Sunday afternoon.
Benitez – who has come under fire from the likes of Jamie Redknapp for his plans – employed a system of five defenders at the back, with no intention of getting forward regularly – but his tactics were not effective this time, as Eden Hazard and a DeAndre Yedlin own goal secured all three points for the Blues despite an equaliser from Joselu.
Gullit backed Benitez’ system, and admitted that he was right to use these tactics due to the absences of a couple of his star players due to injury.
“Newcastle boss Rafael Benitez’s tactics – with a five-man defence and no real ambition to get forward – was criticised by some. If, as a team, you believe you can match up against the opposition and hold your own, you will hate playing that system,” the former United and Chelsea manager told BBC Sport.
“You can only get that buy-in from your players if they understand that the opposition is so much better individually, that they have to really scrap and fight to take even a point. Given the circumstances, with Newcastle missing key players like Jonjo Shelvey and Jamaal Lascelles, it was a legitimate tactic.”
OPINION
Many people may have questioned why Benitez employed such a bizarre system in the match against Chelsea, especially when it involved a lack of urgency to get forward. However, Benitez knows the Chelsea team pretty well after his short stint in charge of the team, and he obviously felt that this was the best system to use against such an attacking-minded side. However, this did not prove to be an effective tactic by the Spaniard, as it ended up costing his team all three points. The header from Joselu was impressive, but United were completely outplayed in terms of possession, and this showed. However, given the calibre of individuals Newcastle were up against, Gullit is right to back Benitez this time around. With players like Hazard on the ball, you need all the bodies you can get behind the ball, and the manager obviously recognised this due to the absences of Lascelles and Shelvey.
