Shane Clancy
After waiting until November for their first Premier League win of the season, Newcastle United then went and won two games in a row.
Home victories over Watford and Bournemouth were just what Rafa Benitez needed ahead of the last international break.
Benitez spoke to the media today ahead of The Magpies’ trip to Burnley on Monday night and the Spanish coach reckons his side are gradually finding their feet after a tough start.
“We started walking, now we are running and hopefully we can sprint,” Benitez told his pre-match press conference.
Benitez referred to the patient approach he believes is necessary to successfully navigate a full Premier League season.
“It doesn’t matter what you do, it’s what you have to do in terms of improving the squad. I always say it’s a long distance race. We are working on players and working on names, we have to keep winning.”
Newcastle have now gone three games without defeat and you wouldn’t bet against them extending that run on Monday night as Burnley are a team really struggling to recover their form of last season.
Benitez’s side face a run of six games now where he will be hoping they can take several points from other bottom-half teams in their quest for Premier League survival.