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We've no more distractions - Benítez
Written by Rory Mitchinson
Rafa Benítez is relieved that all of his players’ focus lies firmly on Premier League survival after a hectic end to the transfer window at St. James’ Park.
Forward Islam Slimani and goalkeeper Martin Dúbravka both joined the Magpies on Wednesday – arriving on loan from Leicester City and Sparta Prague respectively – while six players, including Rolando Aarons and Aleksandar Mitrović, headed out of the club on a temporary basis.
In the midst of it all, United were denied a first home victory since October by Sam Vokes’ 85th-minute leveller for Burnley, a result which leaves Benítez’s side just a point clear of the relegation zone ahead of Sunday’s trip to Crystal Palace.
Still, the Spaniard insists the mood at the club’s Benton training base is “positive” as the Magpies head into the final, decisive third of the 2017/18 campaign.
“The first message I gave to the players after the transfer window, after the training session on the morning, was, ‘Listen, this is the group of players that have to fight for every point until the end of the season.’ From now, there are no distractions, and everybody has to be sure they are ready,” he said. “The players, the team, they have to just concentrate on that, because some of them were maybe thinking, ‘I could go here, I could go there.’ Now, everybody’s here, and everybody has to give their best.
“We are fine, the atmosphere is quite good, and the players are training really hard. We have a situation, it’s a normal football club trying to do their best in a competition like the Premier League, which is the best league in the world.”
Sunday’s opponents are a place higher than Newcastle in the current standings, but – like every other side in the bottom half of the league – Roy Hodgson’s troops still have plenty of work to do if they are to make sure of their top-flight status for another season.
“I realise there are five points between tenth and the drop zone so it is very close, very narrow, and that is sometimes good because you have a lot of teams there,” Benítez said. “If you have three (detached) at the bottom it will be easier because you have a bigger distance, but that is not the case.
“Even if you have a bad result, you carry on, because the next one could be good and then you could be two or three positions higher.”
"From now, there are no distractions, and everybody has to be sure they are ready."