Striker salutes ruthless Newcastle and now wants top-10 finish

RAFA BENITEZ’S men have been expert at destroying their bottomhalf rivals this season.

When the pressure is on, Newcastle have got the job done.

They have beaten relegationthreatened West Ham and Stoke, both twice, Swansea, Palace, Southampton, but only one surprise win – against Manchester United.

Crucially, they have also avoided defeat, battling out draws in five other games around the drop zone, losing only at Huddersfield and Brighton early in the season.

No wonder goal hero Ayoze Perez (right), who scored in the 80th minute, said: “This is one of my best moments at Newcastle. It has to be.

“Coming up from the Championship, the first season is always really tough and we’ve been working really hard and playing as a team and finally put ourselves in a great position.

“This kind of goal, this kind of situation, means a lot to me. It’s really enjoyable.”

The Spanish striker believes United can now push on towards the top 10.

He added: “This game was crucial for us – one of the most important of the season.

“We’re seven points clear of the bottom three, which is a great distance, but there are still games to play and we have to keep going.

“Nobody in the dressingroom is saying we’re safe, but this is a big step. We’re close, really close and we know that and it’s a good feeling, but the job is not done.

“There are still a lot of games to play and a lot of points to play for. It’s important for us to be in this position and it’s a very strong one, but we need to make sure we do the job and that our main target is done as quickly as possible.”

Next up is Leicester, two years after the first game in charge for Benitez (below), when the Toon were heading down.

What has changed? Perez added: “A lot of things. You can see the difference straight away. Back then we probably had a better squad, we had a lot of very good players, but in the end we were relegated.

“This season is different and a lot of that is down to him.

Since he came he has been massive for all of us. We try our best in every game and play as a team. That’s it really. We are picking up what we deserve.”

Huddersfield are battling their own relegation demons. Scoring is their problem.

No goals in the last four games and failing to net in nine of the last 12 suggests a worrying trend.

While Newcastle have progressed since promotion, Town look limited. But boss Wagner insists they are still in a solid position with 31 points already.

He said: “It is a good season after 32 games if we are in a position to fight to have another season in the Premier League.

“So far it’s a good season, but we would like to get over the line and to do that we have to use our goal chances. There is no doubt we have to score goals.

“The spirit and this effort and attitude, that the players always bring to the games gives me confidence. I think we can get this over the line.

“Yeh. 31 points. For me I am not worried about how many points. I focus on our performance. Defensively, second-half was one of the best of the season.

“What should I moan about? I moan we have not scored and brought real pressure on our opponents.

“In the next game, another very important one, we have everything in our hands and hopefully for a better result.”