Andros a boy for Roy says Rafa
WINGER Andros Townsend’s heroics in Newcastle’s survival scrap can earn him a place in Roy Hodgson’s England squad at Euro 2016. That is the prediction of boss Rafa Benitez, who believes Townsend is playing well enough to earn an international recall. He won the last of his 10 caps as a second- half sub for Ross Barkley in Lithuania last October, at a time when he was frozen out at Tottenham. But since his move to the North- east, the 24- year- old has been playing regularly and scoring goals.
His stunning free- kick against Crystal Palace last week was his fourth in 11 games and lifted Benitez’s side out of the relegation zone.
“For me, yes, he can be in the squad without any problem,” said Benitez. “He has quality, not just with his freekicks and the way he plays but also he works so hard, helping the team in defence.
“When you are a manager, you are always looking for players you can trust and he can make a difference. Physically, he is fi ne now and has a lot of confi dence in himself.”
Newcastle travel to Aston Villa today in a match where home fans are planning yet another protest against owner Randy Lerner, this time by throwing infl atable footballs on the pitch in the 74th minute, a reference to the fact the club was one of the Football League founder members in 1874.
Benitez will hope that does not derail the momentum his team have in their bid to avoid the drop. He has restored belief, not just within his squad, but also among fans, most of whom now believe Newcastle can escape.
But the Spaniard is taking nothing for granted against Villa. “The team is very close to doing well but the hard work is not done,” he said. “I don’t want my players thinking they are favourites to stay up.
“The message is the opposite of that. And Villa will not be easy because against Watford last week, they played very well.”
Defeat for Villa would set a club record of 12 straight league defeats.
Caretaker boss Eric Black is adamant his men know they need to give their all in fairness to the teams scrapping to avoid joining them in the Championship.
He said: “We owe it to everyone to try and put in a good performance. But the record thing is motivation enough.”