MX23RW : Monday, November 25 03:56:41| >> :120:18306:18306:

Newcastle United boss Rafael Benitez calls for united front

Newcastle United boss Rafael Benitez says that his players must now realise that they are "the head of the mouse" in the Championship.

Newcastle United boss Rafael Benitez has claimed that his team must get used to 'managing games' as they bid to return to the Premier League at the first time of asking.

It has been a mixed start to the 2016-17 Championship season for the Magpies, who have won five and lost three of their eight fixtures this season, which has left them in third spot in the table.

Saturday's 2-0 home defeat to Wolverhampton Wanderers ended a five-game winning run for Newcastle, however, and Benitez has said that his players must realise that they are "now the head of the mouse".

"We need to realise we're now the head of the mouse, and not the tail of the lion. It's a Spanish expression," Benitez told reporters.

"So, when you are in the Premier League, you are the tail of the lion and some people are happy being the tail of the lion, some prefer to be the head of the mouse. When you are at the top and strong enough, we want to make sure we are strong enough to be sure that we can manage the games.

"Teams will come against us and wait, so we have to make sure we know what to do every time and, if we make mistakes, we carry on because there are a lot games to play and we need to be consistent in the right way. If it's good we can be excited, if it's bad we analyse on what we need to do and improve things quickly."

Newcastle will again welcome Wolves to St James' Park on Tuesday night, this time in the third round of the League Cup.

ID:281635: cacheID:281635:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:2305:
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Haris Vuckic in action for Newcastle on January 3, 2015
Read Next:
Newcastle's Vuckic joins Bradford on loan
>
Read more about Rafael Benitez Football
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool1210112481631
2Manchester CityMan City127232217523
3Chelsea126422314922
4Arsenal126422112922
5Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton126422116522
6Tottenham HotspurSpurs1261527131419
7Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest125431513219
8Aston Villa125431919019
9Newcastle UnitedNewcastle115331311218
10Fulham125341717018
11Brentford125252222017
12Manchester UnitedMan Utd124441313016
13Bournemouth124351617-115
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham113351319-612
15Everton122551017-711
16Leicester CityLeicester122461523-810
17Wolverhampton WanderersWolves122372028-89
18Ipswich TownIpswich121651323-109
19Crystal Palace121561017-78
20Southampton121110924-154


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!