Newcastle United manager Rafael Benitez has revealed that he believes the club has the potential to be fight with the Premier League’s big boys and that he wants to be given the “chance to compete”.
The Magpies are within touching distance of securing their place in the top flight for next season after a relegation fight in the first half of the season, with a game against Arsenal on Monday night.
Having had mixed results against the top sides in the division, beating Manchester City but losing to the likes of Tottenham, Benitez insists he wants to have a Newcastle side who can go toe-to-toe with their rivals.
He told Sky Sports: “I’m coming from an environment where I’m used to winning titles. What I want is the chance to compete, to have the chance to compete and to be sure that if you play against Arsenal, you are equal and you say ‘OK, we can beat you’.
“Whereas at the beginning of the season ‘we may get a point against Man City, Arsenal or Liverpool which would be a good achievement’. No, I used to win against these teams. I like to have a team that can compete and if you manage right and tactically you can win. It’s something that you can do.”
Opinion
Is this a not-so-secretly hidden message to the board at St James’ Park? Most likely, with the manager’s contract coming to an end this summer. He appears to be saying that he expects to see ambition from Mike Ashley if he is going to pen a new deal at the club – a word that the owner has seemingly disregarded during his recent years on Tyneside. A man of Benitez’s pedigree and footballing knowledge obviously wants to be in with a chance of fighting for some sort of silverware, be that the FA Cup or League Cup – the Premier League out of their reach right no – but unfortunately that seems a million miles away under the current ownership. Something has to change if Benitez is to get his wish but with just months before his contract is out, will it be a case of too little, too late for the Magpies?
