Premier League strugglers Newcastle United have appointed former Real Madrid boss Rafael Benitez as their new manager on a three-year deal.
Benitez, who has also previously managed Napoli, replaces Steve McClaren, who was sacked earlier on Friday after nine months in the job, and is tasked with preserving his new club’s top-flight status with them sitting 19th, one point adrift of safety.
The dismissal had been widely expected following Saturday’s shambolic 3-1 defeat at home to AFC Bournemouth which left the Magpies languishing in the Premier League relegation zone, a point adrift of safety.
McClaren was appointed head coach in June 2015, shortly after being dismissed by Championship side Derby County, and was also given a place on the board. His first Premier League win did not come until the ninth game, a 6-2 victory over Norwich City, but that was followed a week later by a 3-0 thrashing at bitter rivals Sunderland.
The club spent heavily in the off-season on Georginio Wijnaldum, Chancel Mbemba and Aleksandar Mitrovic and again in January – no club in Europe spent more in the latest transfer window – on the likes of Jonjo Shelvey, Andros Townsend and Henri Saivet, but results have remained disappointing, culminating in the defeat to Bournemouth.
The build-up to that game was dominated by newspaper reports suggesting the club’s players had lost faith in McClaren, who had an angry exchange with a journalist when responding to the claims last Friday.
Newcastle’s players released a statement prior to the weekend clash with Eddie Howe’s men, insisting they remained behind McClaren, but an own goal from Steven Taylor and efforts from Josh King and Charlie Daniels ultimately sealed the former England manager’s fate amid a toxic atmosphere at St James’ Park.
Benitez, who was sacked at Madrid in January, has been itching to return to the Premier League after a six-year spell at Liverpool, with whom he won the Champions League in 2005 and the FA Cup a year later, and a six-month interim role at Chelsea, which resulted in him landing the 2013 Europa League title.
COMMENTS