Sam Allardyce has told Mike Ashley and Rafa Benitez that they must ‘get on with it’ at Newcastle United, even if they don’t like each other – admitting that he had no relationship whatsoever with the NUFC owner during his spell at the club.
He admits he ‘never really had a relationship with Mike’, stating he ‘wasn’t the type’ to get involved and instead wanted to ‘enjoy the ride’ and let other people do the work for him.
He generally talks about the importance of harmony between owner and manager, however.
It’s an amusing piece of advice fro Big Sam, with his comments almost suggesting that both are to blame for the lack of communication and harmony at the club.
Here’s what he’s had to say:
“If you’re going to be successful, harmony at the top’s very important – communication and pulling in the right direction.
“Whether that’s happening with Rafa and Mike, I’m not privy to that information, but certainly, from my point of view as a manager, the relationship between the owners and you as a manager is critical.
“(A club) can succeed but you have to put your differences to one side, both the owner and you, as the manager, and work together to get on with the job. Whether you like each other or not doesn’t particularly matter; as long as you do the business and the best for the football club.
“I was there for seven months and never really had a relationship with Mike – he wasn’t the type. He wanted other people to run the club and he wanted to come along and enjoy the ride. I don’t know whether that’s changed or not.
“Because in the transfer market Benitez is limited, as we all find ourselves with whatever club we’re at, we try and use our tactics and the players we’ve got to the best of our ability.
“The Newcastle fans give (Ashley) a lot of stick, but he is the owner of the football club and he has put his money in. Whether that’s enough or not he decides how much money he wants to give the club and it’s up to you as the manager to try and spend that as wisely as you can.
“Only time will tell if Rafa has. He certainly did last year; he finished very, very strongly. This year’s a difficult start but maybe again they’ll come through. New players again – we all have to settle players in very quickly, and that’s very demanding as a manager.”
He’s not wrong in parts, Rafa is working on a limited budget and is forced to make the best of his players and his ability as a manager as is tested a result – however this surely goes against his initial point.
If the key is to have ‘harmony’ and ‘pull in the right direction’, then Ashley is clearly the one to blame for the poor relationship between the pair.
His communication is once or twice a year, his backing is minimal (see net spend this summer) and his levels of ambition are non existent.
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