Success will be hard won for players, admits Rafa

NEWCASTLE United boss Rafa Benitez has told his team to face up to the fact they will have to carve out results this season if they are to be a success.

The Magpies were outplayed by Watford, with the game done and dusted just after the hour mark as Benitez’s side suffered their fourth consecutive defeat in the Premier League.

When asked if it was time to abandon the 4-4-2 formation, Benitez said: “We will analyse how the players are and who are the best for every game.

“But it’s not just a question of the shape of the team or the formation, it’s just a question of understanding that we are a team that has to work very, very hard if we want to get results. “That’s what we have to do.” The Toon boss believes that the 4-4-2 debate is a surprise given some people wanted to see that during a stint of games in which he played a 4-5-1 system.

He said: “We were doing that before with one striker and still we were complaining about, ‘We need to play with two strikers’.

“Now we are playing with two strikers and losing games, we are saying, ‘Mmm...’.

“We have to realise that we are a team that has to work hard from now until the end of the season.

“It’s not a surprise for us that when you make mistakes, you pay for that. We knew that was the Premier League and it’s what’s happening now.”

Benitez was then asked if the team was working as hard as it should be.

He responded: “They are working hard, but in the second half, when we conceded, we were a little bit disorganised.

“We have to go back to the principles that [we had when] we were compact, we were working as a unit.

“It doesn’t matter if you play with two strikers or one striker if you are compact enough to defend and attack.” Watford’s Marco Silva could relax after half an hour