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He's like the son I never had. Even though I do have a son already, and Rafa's old enough to be my father.
Looking forward to seeing Rafa back in the prem.........Ashley owes the supporters and Rafa the financial clout to compete
Credit to Rafa for proving he could do it. Not sure which clubs looking for managers could tempt him away but if he doesn't get the financial backing to compete in the PL, I don't think he'll stick with Newcastle too long.
I sort of felt he stayed on at Newcastle because there were maybe no other offers. He stayed knowing it was a risk but also a real challenge he'd taken on. Admire him for that when other top managers are going to the likes of Chelsea and Real Madrid i.e. pretty safe bets for a ''challenge'', he took on a real one. Now he's accomplished promotion - the reason he said he'd stay on for - there's not much keeping him there if he gets a call from elsewhere. The lack of financial backing, should it happen, will frustrate him and he'll see it as a lack of support. He also probably doesn't have the same affinity with them as he has for us so it will be easier to walk away. I think he deserves more than scrapping around the mid to bottom of the league.
He'd become a bit of a journeyman in recent years, and I think he maybe needed the promotion on his CV nearly as much as they needed him to deliver it. They also paid him handsomely for the privilege. The fact that he's not committed to staying yet is undoubtedly a combination of him waiting to see what his budget will be and whether anything better comes along in the interim.
