Rafael Benitez says contract talks with Newcastle have NOT advanced and urges the club to decide whether to progress to the next level or not quickly

Rafael Benitez says contract talks with Newcastle have NOT advanced and urges the club to decide whether to progress to the next level or not quickly
Newcastle boss Rafael Benitez has revealed contract talks with the club have not advanced and urged the Magpies hierarchy to act quickly regarding what they plan to do in the transfer market.Benitez, who has been in charge since the back end of the 2015/16 season, is out of contract this summer.3

Benitez has put Newcastle on the verge of Premier League safety

He is adored by the Toon Army after getting the club back into the Premier League in the 2016/17 campaign and following their win over Southampton at St James Park, Newcastle went ten points clear of the relegation zone.It means the club are all but safe and can start planning for life in the top flight next season and Newcastle fans will hope that owner Mike Ashley will spend money in the summer window.

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And speaking to talkSPORTs Laura Woods and Stuart Pearce after the game, Benitez said Newcastle were now at a crossroads and had to decide if they wanted to go to the next level or continue to be a team that struggles to stay in the division.Benitez said: You can see the potential every single weekend.3

Newcastle fans were very frustrated by Mike Ashley’s lack of spending last summer

The city is behind the team, the stadium is full of fans every weekend and now we have to decide if we want to compete between 7th and 10th or between 15th and 17th.At the moment the wage bill is really really important, not just the transfer fees. If you want to attract good players with good quality you have to pay them good salaries because the other teams are doing that.The teams between 7th and 10th are spending 100million and they are spending money on players on 100,000 a week so we have to decide if we want to compete with them or not.

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• Rafael Benitez to be given 100million war chest over next two seasons – reports

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Im not asking for anything. I want some balance between the money you can spend and pay in relation to the teams that compete. We have the likes of [Martin] Dubravka and [Salomon] Rondon who give everything and they give the young players the time to get better and better.Me, as a manager, Im not asking for more I just want us to be sure that we clarify. Its not what we say, its what we do.On whether talks for a new contract have advanced, Benitez said: No and I dont want to take advantage of anything. At this stage of the season you have to make decisions.Although Newcastle still have three games left this season, the manager called for the club to begin the recruitment process for new signings now.3

Benitez is adored by the Toon Army

He added: If you want to sign players then you have to do it now.“You cannot keep talking and talking because you cannot pay more money than some of the other teams so you have to go early and you have to find the right one and you have to do it NOW.Listen to the full Rafael Benitez interview with Laura Woods and Stuart Pearce above!

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