It has been a bit of a slow summer for Newcastle United so far.

Only two new faces have arrived in the form of Eibar defender Florian Lejeune and Chelsea’s Christian Atsu has joined full-time after enjoying a loan spell with the Toon last term.

Lejeune stated that Newcastle boss Rafa Benitez was a big reason for signing on:

“When you have a manager like Rafa Benitez who wants you, you are very happy to come,”

The Spanish gaffer will be hoping to steer the club into a top ten finish in their first season back in the Premier League after winning promotion last term. They have a Premier League ready squad but they still lack that star quality that you’d expect from a top ten side.

Benitez is a proud manager and he demands the best from his players. He doesn’t want to be seen as an also ran, he wants to be viewed as an achiever. By finishing in the top ten, he’d receive high praise indeed.

He has recently stated his frustration in this transfer window, he’s described it as being ‘crazy’ with teams splashing lots of cash.

At Newcastle Utd under Mike Ashley, Rafa knows he’ll get a certain amount to play with but it won’t be as high as others in the league like Man United, Everton or any of the top sides.

It seems like he’s determined to bide his time and get players closer to what he believes to be their true value. He’ll know that that strategy comes with risks and that bringing in new faces towards the end of preseason and the window will see new signing’s taking a bit more time to settle in.

But Rafa will be hoping that by keeping the core of his successful side together then that continuity will stand them in good stead for the start of the season.

There’s no doubt that having Benitez has brought back a feel good factor for the fans at St James’ Park. But everyone is wary that hope owner Ashely doesn’t push the self destruct button as he has done in the past. If he keeps his distance then morale should be high this term for the Toon.

Rafa Benitez is a highly ambitious manager and will his side give their all next term for the club’s support. But the Premier League has changed since Newcastle dropped out in 2016, clubs have spent big and it will be interesting to see if Rafa and his men can steer clear of relegation and finish in the top half!

For that to happen I’d expect a marquee signing to come in before the end of August.

Posted on July 13th, 2017 by scott
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