Newcastle United manager Rafael Benitez has dropped a hint that he might leave St. James’ Park soon after stating that he is not planning for the ‘long-term’.
There was a sense of euphoria among the Newcastle United fans after the club hierarchy managed to tie down Rafael Benitez to a new three year deal at the start of last season despite the Magpies being relegated into the Championship.
Having stayed loyal, Benitez guided Newcastle back into the Premier League at the first time of asking and there is no doubting that the Spaniard has already managed to win over the club faithful despite arriving at St. James’ Park just over a year ago.
However, there is a grave danger that Benitez could now well walk out on Newcastle after not being handed sufficient funds to strengthen his squad this summer by owner Mike Ashley and the 57-year-old has dropped a subtle hint that exiting the club is currently on his mind by stating that he is not thinking about long-term plans with the Magpies at the moment.
Benitez said, “My aim is trying to improve things, so when I leave, whenever it is, I would like to be sure that the team and the football club will be better. Normally, managers talk about projects saying they need four or five years. I’m not talking about that, because you never know in football.
“But when we came here, we knew there were some issues and we had to improve things. I’m sure we have improved some things, but we need to improve more. What I want is that we have a football vision and allow the business to also be productive and make a profit, but football has to be a priority.”