Rafa Benitez has always been a manager who had the reputation of stabilising a team’s defence. He has been able to do that successfully in almost all the previous clubs he has managed in his career so far. Since he took charge of Newcastle United, the Magpies have shown improvement in their defensive organisation and displayed much better performances on the pitch but unfortunately, all the other teams around them kept picking up points which ultimately led to their relegation to the Championship.
Benitez has had a pretty solid transfer window so far, doing some smart business, getting in some very good players who will help Newcastle’s cause of securing a quick promotion back to the top-flight. The manager has even successfully managed to convince some players to make the switch from the Premier League to the Championship to play under him at Newcastle.
Right-back Daryl Janmaat was always a polarising figure at the club. His attacking performances were impressive, but he simply wasn’t a good enough player at the back and yet his reputation meant that he was always likely to move after the relegation.
The Dutch fullback has signed for Premier League side Watford for a fee of £7m. On the other hand, to his credit, Benitez has wasted no time in identifying and make a move for the potential replacement of the departing fullback. Tottenham’s DeAndre Yedlin, who spent last season on loan to Sunderland, has signed for the Magpies and will want to put on impressive performances if he is to convince his new set of fans in the North-East.
The capture of Yedlin is a very good move for the Magpies as the 23-year old is a player who is capable of playing as a fullback, wingback as well as a right sided midfielder. With the player in their squad, the Tyneside club will have a lot more versatility which will, in turn, help the manager should he opt to change things a bit according to the situation.
Having played regularly for the Black Cats last season under pressure would also have given him a lot of experience and confidence and even though it can be argued that Janmaat was a better player, Yedlin can continue to develop and reach a much higher level playing under Benitez, which will be the perfect win-win situation for both the United States international and the Magpies.
