Rafa Pleased By Striker Competiton

By Dominic Scurr

Rafa Benitez is confident his strikers can fire Newcastle United to victory at Southampton on Saturday (3pm kick-off).

The Magpies' boss has been encouraged by his side's attacking threat in recent weeks, with Serbian forward Aleksandar Mitrovic scoring three goals in two Barclays Premier League matches.

Mitrovic came off the bench to bag a brace during last Saturday's 3-2 defeat at Norwich City and Benitez believes he has plenty of options to select from in the final third.

"We have Mitrovic scoring goals and (Ayoze) Pérez is doing well," said the United manager, ahead of the weekend trip to St. Mary's.

"The good thing is that we also have (Papiss) Cissé back and he was good the other day so we have the quality. But this gives me a problem because I have to decide (who to play).

"Before, Papiss was injured and I couldn't choose him but now he's another option and the competition for places in this area is good for the team.

"When people ask why certain players are not playing it is a positive because at least I have this option. I'm very pleased with the way Ayoze, Mitrovic, Papiss, (Emmanuel) Rivière and (Seydou) Doumbia are competing for places at the moment.

"I'm really pleased with Mitrovic every day, not just when he came off the bench. In training he is doing very well and giving it his all.

"But it wouldn't be fair to single him out because every is training well and I can guarantee that they are giving it their all. We are trying to improve every day to be ready for the next challenge (against Southampton).

"The team has to improve mentally and approach the game with confidence and positivity. Hopefully if we do this against Southampton we can do well and get the result that we want."