Rafa Benitez has suggested that it will take a miracle for his Newcastle United side to finish in the top half of the Premier League.
The Magpies failed to find a way past bottom of the table Fulham, who had not kept a clean sheet all season prior to Saturday, in a dour 0-0 stalemate at St. James’ Park.
Speaking after the match, as quoted in the Chronicle, the Spanish manager admitted that the prospects of his side climbing away from a relegation battle over the remainder of the campaign were minimal, and addressed the growing frustration of some fans.
He said: “We talked about the pressure of being one city. Our fans know that they want the best for the team and they are frustrated because they want more.
“I’m sure after a couple of days they will look back and think they are trying their best.
“We have to realise we will be in the second half of the table all season. If we go well and do better than that it will be a miracle.
“You could see today we were a little bit tense and the players were close to making mistakes.”
OPINION
It won’t come as a shock for any Newcastle fans to hear such a frank appraisal of their side’s prospects, but it is hard to swallow such harsh assessments from the manager himself. A win against Fulham would have secured a massive three points for the Magpies, who face Liverpool, Manchester United, Manchester City, and Tottenham in their next seven league matches. The Toon Army are not far enough away from danger to go into that run of fixtures with any kind of confidence, and for all they have recaptured some decent form in recent weeks, it’s easy to foresee a situation in a month’s time where they are firmly embroiled in a dogfight for survival. On Benitez’s part, he is just being honest, and the fans will appreciate him not trying to patronise them, but there’s a fine line between realism and pessimism, and the last thing Newcastle need at the moment is to admit defeat.