According to the Sun’s north-east reporter David Coverdale, Mike Ashley ‘will not budge’ after offering Rafa Benitez a new short-term contract extension.
The piece claims that Mike Ashley’s offer, which includes an offer of £50m to spend, is ‘non-negotiable’, insisting that it’s his ‘final offer’ – despite the fact Rafa’s current deal expires in just 10 days time.
Here’s a snippet from Coverdale’s latest piece for the Sun this morning, suggesting both parties are now waiting for the other to blink first after reaching a stalemate:
‘The Magpies manager is unhappy with some of the details of the deal discussed, mainly around recruitment.
‘But Newcastle insist the contract on the table – understood to be a short-term extension – is their final offer, that a transfer budget of around £50million is non-negotiable and they are now just waiting for an outright answer.
‘The Toon seem to be trying to take away some of Benitez’s power and will not budge.
‘And both parties are now just holding out hope that the other blinks first.‘
Coverdale claims that Benitez may yet decide to sign the deal on the table at the 11th hour, with him reluctant to accept any offers from China or be out of work.
That said, he does also state that Rafa may be likely to accept any good offer that arrives from Europe – although it sounds like a big one hasn’t come his way as of yet.
It’s quite unbelievable that we’ve allowed this situation to drag on. It’s now over a MONTH on from Rafa’s crunch talks in London, yet it seems Mike Ashley has shown no urge to compromise – despite the fact he’s now risking losing a world class manager, and several players / fans with it.
