“Newcastle is a club that belongs in the Premier League. They have some of the best fans in the country and the prestige of the club is up there with the best, but they have had difficult times in recent years, both on and off the field. That’s why Rafa Benitez’ work this season has been so brilliant. Newcastle were promoted back to the Premier League last season and invested little in new talent in the summer. The club’s net spend was significantly less than Huddersfield and Brighton’s who both joined them in promotion, so you could argue that Rafa has secured safety in the Premier League with a Championship quality side.

“That approach has helped his team grow in quality without bringing in too many new recruits. But there is still a lot of work to do at Newcastle before they reach the success that they experienced in the 90’s and holding onto Rafa will be a key part of that. His work this season with limited resources will have been noted by many clubs around Europe who will want to tempt him away from the North East. He has been loyal so far, but unless the board give him more funding and more ambitious plans for growing the club’s position, Rafa won’t stick around for long.”

#MarioMelchiot