Newcastle’s Relegation Will Be Worth It if Rafa Benitez Stays

By Seth Libby

There’s an argument to be made that Newcastle United deserved this. After the fans demanded Alan Pardew get the boot, after years of poor ownership from Mike Ashley, after a dismal run orchestrated by Steve McClaren, how could this end in any way but relegation?

And yet, if Rafa Benitez decides to stick it out and bring the Magpies back up, it will all be worth it. Despite the petulance of some of the fanbase and the poor decisions of ownership, Newcastle could come back reformed into the powerhouse it has always envisioned itself. Somehow the sinking ship has struck land, and that land happens to be a gold mine.

So, why would Benitez stay? A man who was at this time last year about to take over Real Madrid can certainly find top-flight soccer. Everton are in need of a manager, and if Ronald Koeman takes that bite, then there will be Southampton with a spot. Wigan also have a vacancy. Benitez would be a top contender for any of those jobs. And that’s only England.

Yet, there might be some allure in sticking it out. First, achieving the one season bounce back is a unique challenge that top managers rarely bother to add to their achievements. And then, to bounce back and try to pull a Leicester (or at least a Southampton) would truly solidify his reputation.

To orchestrate a renaissance for a big, storied club, that’s the stuff of legends, and it’s the stuff that has attracted Benitez throughout his career. He never wanted to leave Liverpool, a big, storied club he was trying to restore to its accustomed prominence. And his attraction to Napoli later points to a chronic desire to fulfill that dream. It might be nice to finally find a club that appreciates what he’s trying to do. If Newcastle will give him the opportunity, there’s a chance he’d take it.

While Benitez has proved he is not quite at the level of the Jose Mourinhos and Pep Guardiolas of the world, working with a far more grateful and recently humbled fanbase might allow him to live right up to his level. Undoubtedly, Benitez could bring this team back up in a season, especially if he can attract a decent squad, as his reputation ought to. And from there, perhaps he could build a team not just hoping to stay up, but a team working towards something.

What Newcastle fan wouldn’t take Liverpool’s results under Benitez? Benitez could turn the Magpies into the perennial thorn in the side of the top clubs, a spoiler with an eye to nick a cup or a Champions League spot should others be caught looking the other way. Even just finishing consistently in the top half of the table would be quite an achievement, and Benitez is capable of much more than that. He had this flailing team drawing against Manchester City and Liverpool and demolishing Tottenham at the end of this season. Imagine what he could do if given his own squad and a few seasons at the helm.

Of course, such a rosy future requires a number of things, including better guidance at the top from Ashley, and the ability to bring in players who are willing to play. It also requires time and patience from a notoriously impatient fanbase.

But if Benitez stays, that will be a sign anything is possible. And it will make a season’s relegation more than worth it.

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