Benitez out to stay at Mags, sale or not
Rafael Benitez is confident he will still be Newcastle manager in a year’s time whether or not a takeover happens.
The Spaniard, 57, fielded questions about the club’s ownership after it emerged that the PCP Capital Partners group headed by Amanda Staveley had tabled a formal bid.
Fans who have railed against owner Mike Ashley for much of his reign to date are pinning their hopes on a takeover and subsequent January investment to boost the Magpies’ chances of retaining their place in the top flight.
However Benitez, who has been left frustrated after the last two transfer windows, is confident he will still be in charge in 12 months’ time regardless of what transpires over the next few weeks.
Asked if that would be the case, he said: “I think so. I’m quite happy with this group of players, they’re improving, they’re learning.
“I think so. I don’t see any difficulty now. Just for me it is a challenge now. I was disappointed after the summer? Yes. But still this is a chance for me.”
Benitez is taking a pragmatic approach as he awaits news from the boardroom.
But he acknowledges that a swift resolution one way or the other would be better for him, his staff and the players. He said: “Yes, obviously, you know where you are then. But at the moment, we do not know what will happen, so we have to carry on doing the same things.”
In the meantime, the Spaniard will get on with the task of attempting to end a three-game losing streak which has taken the gloss off a promising start to the campaign adamant that the current crop of players is giving him everything they have.
He said: “My disappointment [at the end of the summer transfer window] was because I was trying to be in the top 10.
“Now it’s just to be sure that we stay in the Premier League and we go as high as possible in the table, because you never know.”