Newcastle United legend and fan Alan Shearer has sent owner Mike Ashley a message in the form of a small rant over the future of manager Rafael Benitez.
The former Newcastle forward believes that the first port of call for Ashley and his team should be to make sure that current manager and fan favourite Benitez is still at the club for next season, with his contract coming to an end this summer.
Shearer has been a real advocate for the Spaniard in recent months, and won’t be slowing down anytime soon.
“I was very happy watching that performance today…but they need to sort his (Rafa Benitez’s) future out.” said Shearer on BBC’s Match of the Day (Sunday 12th May, 22:30).
“They need to keep Rafa at all costs.Whether they get him (buy Rondon on a permanent deal), whether they want to pay that money, that is a different matter. First and foremost though, they need to sort out Rafa’s future.”
OPINION
It’s clear to see for football fans around the country that Shearer has strong beliefs when it comes to the current Newcastle United manager, and the former goalscorer made his feelings clear once again as the season concluded, on Match of the Day. Arguably, Shearer has only said what the majority of the Newcastle fans are already saying, in fact have been saying for a long time now. Ashley has not been short of the odd controversial decision since being the owner of Newcastle United, but if Benitez were to end up leaving the club for whatever reason, that may top any other thing that he has ever done. Newcastle need to try and secure his services for the foreseeable future, especially considering the unlikelihood of their being a suitable replacement for the Spaniard of the same calibre. Ashley will need to get on with negotiations as soon as possible however, as the season has now concluded, and soon enough Benitez will be looking to bring new players into the club ahead of the Magpies’ upcoming pre-season campaign.
