Match of the Day pundit Ian Wright has aimed a message at critics who are slamming Newcastle United boss Rafa Benitez and the tactics he used in their clash with Chelsea on Sunday.
Benitez set his team up defensively to face the Blues and their star-studded team in a 4-5-1 system, but this ended up not paying off as his side fell to a 2-1 defeat at St James’ Park.
However, Wright has weighed in on the debate, and has launched a blistering attack on critics in his defence of the Spaniard – pointing out that his team would always find it hard to compete against a side who have been invested in heavily over the past few years.
“All those critics who looked down their nose and slaughtered Rafa Benitez’s tactics on Sunday need to get real. They were queuing up to have a pop at the Newcastle boss for being negative against Chelsea,” he wrote in his column for the Sun.
“Each player in a blue shirt cost an average of eight times more than their counterpart. With a stat like that, you have to ask yourself how Toon are expected to compete. Don’t tell me he was out of order trying to shut up shop to get something from the Chelsea game. The only ones guilty of that are those who believe his tactics were wrong. They should know better.”
OPINION
It seems like some pundits weighing in on the debate are divided as to whether they agree with Benitez’ tactics against Chelsea. Yes, those tactics resulted in a loss, but as Wright pointed out – how are they meant to compete against a side who have some of the league’s best players? Chelsea’s squad is worth a lot more than United’s, so who can really blame Benitez for wanting his players to adopt a defensive mindset to the game. Obviously, he should be going into every match thinking that he can get a result, but his aim for this clash was to minimise the amount of goals conceded if his team were to lose. He achieved those aims, so it is not really anyone’s place to continue to slam the way he sets up his team. After all, he led them to tenth in the Premier League last season, which goes to show what an experienced manager he is. If there is anything to take from Wright’s defence, it is that we should leave Benitez to get on with what he does best – manage his team.
