Rafael Benitez
Rafael Benitez
Rafael "Rafa" Benítez Maudesis a Spanish football coach currently managing Newcastle United. He is the only manager in history to have won the UEFA Europa League, UEFA Super Cup, UEFA Champions League and the FIFA Club World Cup...
ProfessionSoccer Player
Date of Birth16 April 1960
CityMadrid, Spain
field game job players rest side squad strong time
But we have another game on Friday, and this is the time to use the squad to give players some rest and to field a side which will still be strong and do the job for us.
challenge convinced fight games good last players squad strong team trophy
My idea is to have two players for each position. If you have a strong squad you can play all the games with a good team. I am convinced we already have a better team than last season. Yes, we want to fight for the Premiership, but we want to go for all of the trophies. We will not say one trophy is more important than the other, because we now have a squad that can challenge in all competitions.
challenge convinced fight games good last players squad strong team trophy
My idea is to have two players for each position, ... If you have a strong squad you can play all the games with a good team. I am convinced we already have a better team than last season. Yes, we want to fight for the Premiership, but we want to go for all of the trophies. We will not say one trophy is more important than the other, because we now have a squad that can challenge in all competitions.
blow coming cope europe games good squad
It is a blow to us because of the big games in Europe that we have coming up, but we have a good squad and we will have to cope without him.
against believe bigger compared games last manage season squad win
We know we can win against them, but over a season the differences are more demanding. But compared to last season we now have a bigger and better squad and I believe we can manage the games in a different way.
fight four good possible squad top
Totten-ham have a good team, a good squad and a good manager. They will fight to be in the top four and we will try to do the same. I don't know if it's possible but we will try.
birmingham clubs concerned cope drawn good league maybe might playing position rather squad staying three
At this stage, with all Premiership clubs you've got to play good teams. Maybe Birmingham will be more concerned about their league position and this might not be as important to them as staying in the division. I feel I've got a big enough squad to cope with playing in three competitions and all I can say is that I'd have rather been drawn at home.
biggest confidence difference football handle mentality physical season squad terms
In terms of the football and the mentality of the squad I think we have much more confidence in ourselves. The biggest difference for us this season is we know how to handle the physical games.
afterwards players
The players said to me afterwards 'yes, it was clear',
brussels good job leg win
We did a very good job in Brussels in the first leg to win 1-0,
against arsenal drop ensure finish means normally points three top win
We have 70 points and that would normally ensure you finish in the top three now. One more win should be enough (to finish in the top three) because Spurs have got to play against Arsenal so that means one of them will drop points.
against good mistakes punish team
When you play against a very good team with good players, you know that if you make mistakes they will punish you.
controlled goal half tempo
We controlled the tempo in the first half but after we conceded the goal it was difficult.
cannot change talk team worked
We need to change things and to improve, but you cannot talk about the work-rate because the team worked very hard.