Rafa on the lookout for a friendly
RAFA Benitez is looking to fix up a mid-season friendly game for Newcastle United due to the impending 21-day fixture gap for the Magpies.
With the March 16 trip to Wembley to face Tottenham Hotspur now postponed due to Mauricio Pochettino guiding his side to the FA Cup quarter-finals, United must wait three weeks for a game between their home clash with Southampton and the meeting with Huddersfield Town at the end of the month.
It is believed that Newcastle have considered flying out for a mid-season friendly, and a trip to La Manga had been considered, while Dubai is another possibility.
But with so many other teams already in action Newcastle may struggle to find high-calibre opponents at such short notice.
Benitez told the Chronicle: “We are already working on that. We’re looking at options in terms of teams and in terms of where we will be.
“Do we want to stay here or go away? Can we bring any team here? We’re working on that.
“The ideal situation will be to have a game then at least we can give the team match fitness as close as possible to a competitive game.”
Newcastle played a fixture in La Manga back in 2016 just before Benitez arrived as boss and on that occasion they ran out 2-1 winners against Lillestrom.
When asked if a similar trip could follow this month, Benitez said: “We are analysing everything now and at the moment it’s at the early stage.
“We’re considering everything. All the other leagues are already playing and you have an international break.
“It’s not easy to find a team, bringing them here or going to them. We will have to find the right one.”