Ask anyone for their opinion on Rafa Benitez’s current relationship with Newcastle United and owner Mike Ashley in particular, and answers could range. Should Benitez be criticised for not getting on with the job, then those who believe such a statement clearly don’t understand the man or the situation he finds himself in.
Battered, bruised, and deflated but, right now, still Newcastle manager; Benitez has been using the British mantra from World War II: ‘Make do and mend’. To a degree he has, but the problems have now reached boiling point after a disastrously typical deadline day at the club’s training base. Having been told he could spend every penny generated from promotion and player sales by Ashley, who denied his ability to flex his personal financial muscle, Benitez left for home on Thursday at around 4pm, with no one coming in.
It was perhaps the fourth or fifth time the goalposts had moved, but Benitez has kept his head down and worked. Emmanuel Riviere, Siem de Jong and Grant Hanley were all sold this week, before Achraf Lazaar and Tim Krul departed as the window closed. A huge chunk of the overloaded wage bill was freed up and yet deals could not be done. Newcastle had tried; Benitez maintained all summer that he wanted a top goalkeeper, which never came close to happening, and a left back to compete with Paul Dummett, the only available option who limped away with the use of crutches. A creative midfielder and a striker, provided Dwight Gayle left for Fulham, were also possibilities.
Yet in almost every sense, the final day of the transfer window summed up Benitez’s problems perfectly. Southampton fullback Matt Targett was all set to come on loan, with a flight being booked ahead of a medical only for the 21-year-old to reject the move because he only wanted it for six months rather than a season. Fulham were willing to pay £18million for Gayle, more than Newcastle’s own club-record fee, making a mockery of Ashley’s claim that there was no money in the bank. Benitez does not hold the club fully responsible for Targett, nor Kenedy, the Brazilian midfielder Chelsea blocked from joining because they needed cover in his position. The issue is not solely to do with transfers, but the complete erosion of trust between board and manager.
There are so many reasons why Benitez and Newcastle fans are a match made in heaven; his ability as a coach and track record and their propensity to worship those who truly understand them being the most obvious. The sad thing is, though, they are both used to being let down and treated poorly; Benitez by his bosses at Valencia, Liverpool, Inter and Real Madrid, and fans by Ashley in exactly the same way for ten years. Right now, they are all that is keeping each other together.
Benitez joined the club because he saw what the fans did, the history and potential, the opportunity to become a legend. He stayed, twice, because Ashley had promised him control and full backing, not necessarily getting everything he wanted, but at the very least the efforts of the board to meet his requests. Three windows into his reign and it can be argued that has happened only once.
Right now, it is obvious the mutual love between them is binding. But with the trust went the belief Benitez will be able to work to the best of his ability; he has been, and will be for however long he works for Ashley, completely shackled. For a time it looked as though the owner had turned a corner, but he will never change and, until he leaves, neither will Newcastle. Benitez will continue to get on with the job, but eventually the strain will grow and managing the club he felt he could mould will become a pointless endeavour. He is not as grateful as predecessors Alan Pardew or Steve McClaren for the opportunity, and when something better inevitably appears, the likelihood is he would take it with the full understanding of those who adore him.
His entire rhetoric for making the, apparently surprising, move to Newcastle was the vision he had of the long-term project. Last week, he admitted that is no longer how he sees things, the clearest indication yet that his patience is wearing dangerously thin. Ashley has spent the majority of his decade at the helm cost-cutting and doing the bare minimum to survive, only to feed fans stories of funds not being available and that they were the problem for demanding too much. Benitez has shown just how much can be achieved if everyone pulls in the right direction. He can make it happen, even without big money, but certainly not with such a poor understanding from his own boss.
Some of the signings made have been ideal. Florian Lejeune and Mikel Merino were top targets for Benitez, as was Jacob Murphy, and it is no surprise that their positions look the strongest for Newcastle. Javier Manquillo and Joselu appeared as deals Benitez sealed after changing his approach: “I’m signing the players I can, not the players I want,” he said recently. Promises have been broken.
The divide at Newcastle United is not just because of money, but more the breakdown of a relationship. Now the transfer deadline has passed, it is too late to mend the bridges and Newcastle’s threadbare squad is in for a tough season. The failings of the board almost feel deliberate, and both Rafa Benitez and the supporters will look at only each other if the current era continues much longer; but that is a big if.
