Newcastle United boss Rafa Benitez talks about how he and Mike Ashley may share the same vision at St James' Park
Rafa Benitez feels that Newcastle United’s title-winning season demonstrates what can be achieved if everybody sticks together at St James’ Park.
Benitez believes that Mike Ashley was able to witness just how great the atmosphere can be at United and feels that both he and the owner now know what success looks like with the Magpies.
Just two years ago fans staged a boycott for the game against Tottenham Hotspur, but Benitez has managed to galvanise everybody at the club.
After leading Newcastle to the Sky Bet Championship title on a dramatic final day of the season, Benitez said the club can be powerful if fans, players and staff work together, he commented: “That was my message from the beginning, and the atmosphere against Barnsley means a lot.
“If we want to be stronger in the future, it is really important to have everybody together united.”
After the game, Benitez ensured every department in his back-room team were pictured with the trophy.
He said: “I was telling everyone to be sure that every player or member of the staff have a picture with the trophy because my experience is that sometimes you are looking as saying, ‘Where is this staff member, where is this player?’ and they don’t have a picture with the cup.
“I think it’s really important for everyone to remember how difficult it was and how important this achievement is.”
He said: “I have an idea already, I think he has an idea.
“Now we have to put both ideas together and hopefully it will be fine this week.”
Newcastle’s title win meant the Magpies pipped Brighton on a nervous last day of the season.
Benitez said he never gave up hope of missing out - even when his team were seven points behind with three games to play.
He said: “No. We had to do what we had to do, that’s football.
“We have had a couple of games here where we have conceded in the last minute, so you never know in football.
“To be fair, I was expecting just to see what happened.
“But I had the belief that Aston Villa could so their job, but we needed to do our job, that was the main thing.
“We knew that it depended on us.
“We had to do our job and I say always, we cannot have any influence on the other results. In this case, when they scored, Brighton, it was, ‘Okay, carry on, we have to do our job’.
“After when Aston Villa scored, you could hear the fans, so it was a question of waiting.
“We were on the pitch and some players were saying, ‘Have they finished? Have they finished?’.
“We didn’t know and we couldn’t change anything, but in the end, everything was fine for us and we are so pleased with that. We have to enjoy it.”