Newcastle manager Rafa Benitez has a job on his hands, says former boss Alan Pardew
Newcastle are yet to win in any competition this season
Sunday 21 October 2018 16:06, UK
Rafa Benitez has a job on his hands to turn things around at Newcastle but must make a plan with owner Mike Ashley, says former manager Alan Pardew.
Newcastle are yet to win in any competition this season and dropped to 20th in the table following a 1-0 defeat to Brighton on Saturday, which continues their worst start to a top-flight season.
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Pardew spent four years at St James' Park, and believes that Benitez has a tough job to revive his team and they need to find their confidence.
"As a manager at Newcastle, I had my own tricky runs there at times and the chairman and the board stayed with me and it's very important to do that because, at the moment, they have a very experienced manager who knows exactly what he's doing", he told Goals on Sunday.
"When you come up to the Premier League and you have the momentum to have a decent season which they had last year, that doesn't always guarantee it will happen in year two.
"I think some of those guys are struggling for confidence a little bit, they need a result quickly and that stadium can change.
"I can think of one game where we were 4-0 down at Arsenal and the place was completely rebellious, and then at 4-3, the place is jumping and it's alive. When it's alive, it is very difficult for the opposition and that's what they have to get back - get that goal, maybe a two-goal lead and that will come back very quickly.
"But the confidence needs to come back and Rafa has got a job on his hands."
Newcastle owner Mike Ashley has actively been seeking a new buyer for the club, and it remains to be seen whether he will invest in the squad in the January transfer window.
Pardew added: "That's something they have to work out and sit down together. We got to a situation in maybe my third season at Newcastle where we really needed help in January. I said to Mike 'I think we're in big danger here' and he came to the fore, we signed four or five players and it transformed our season.
"I think Rafa is going to be in that position, the way it looks at the moment, that he is going to need an influx of new blood into that team.
"We all know it is very difficult for football managers but it is also difficult for owners. I was probably closer to Steve Parish at Crystal Palace than I was to Mike at Newcastle in terms of the running of a business and putting the clubs at risk et cetera.
"It is a difficult situation where he's looking, and has made it quite public that he is willing to sell the football club. I think in January, Mike will have to have a long sit down with Rafa and come up with a plan."
