Rafa Benitez says Newcastle experience has made him better manager
Friday 8 March 2019 23:06, UK
Rafa Benitez says he is a better manager now than he has ever been as he approaches the third anniversary of his arrival at Newcastle.
The 58-year-old could not keep the Magpies in the Premier League after arriving late in the 2015-16 season, but got them promoted at the first time of asking.
Benitez then led Newcastle to a top-ten finish in the top flight last term, and has guided them to 14th place, with nine matches to go, this campaign.
Asked whether his experiences on Tyneside have made him a better coach, Benitez said: "Yes, for sure. Now you are learning and you try to manage sometimes in the same way, sometimes in a different way.
"Now it is easier to watch and analyse games, but still we are doing the same. What does that mean? That football has changed and you have to adapt, so you have to change things.
"You have to learn and I am learning every day. My father was telling me, 'you can do the same job for 30 years and only have one year of experience, or you can change things every year and have 30 years of experience'.
"That is exactly what it has been like for me."
Despite his success at Newcastle, Benitez is yet to agree a new contract with the club and will leave at the end of the season as things stand.
The former Liverpool, Real Madrid and Chelsea boss admits it will be tough to leave, should it come that, saying: "Always when you are happy in a place, it is not easy.
"But at the same time, you want to compete, you want to do well and you want to improve. It's not just that you will be a better manager.
"You want to be a better manager winning something. We have to be sure we can do that."
