OPINION
Every man and his dog on Tyneside knows that the future of Rafael Benitez at Newcastle United is up in the air – the only thing that matters to the Toon Army is getting him to put any and all speculation to bed.
After a frustrating three years at St James’ Park where only his managerial genius has resulted in any sort of pride for the Magpies, you can understand why the Spanish boss is not 100 per cent certain on committing to a new deal with Mike Ashley still in charge.
He knows that the owner is going to be reluctant to give him the financial backing he is looking for, both to improve the club’s infrastructure as well as to provide the funds to spend in the transfer window, and when you are a manager as ambitious as Benitez, why would you stay?
With his future still unclear, the club have decided to break their recent tradition of staying in and around Europe for their summer plans – with an annual trip to Ireland a feature of Benitez’s time in charge – and instead are heading to China to take part in the Premier League Asia Cup.
Having spoken out against such long haul trips in the past, many would have been asking what this would mean for the Spanish boss – but quite frankly, his expectations over what he is given in the summer – if he stays – have surely risen.
He told the Shields Gazette: “We have been there with different teams. You have to manage. Obviously, from the commercial point of view, it’s always positive for the club.I knew that the club wanted to go, and after they informed about all the details.
“Very difficult (to go to Ireland). Because you have to go earlier, and to keep the players away all the time … sometimes it’s not necessary.”
That is a strong hint that his team will not be heading to Ireland – a u-turn from past seasons – but the mention of commercial gain – which in layman’s terms translates to cold hard cash – must mean that he is expecting to see the benefit coming his way if he stays on board.
Cash is king when it comes to Ashley but Benitez will be demanding some much needed backing if the owner wants him to stick around – and that could well come from their trip to China.
