“I think the response from the supporters was breathtaking, for me”, he said. They are one point and one game behind the Black Cats, who can relegate their rivals with a win over Everton on Wednesday.
Advertisement
There is a chance Benitez could opt to remain to oversee a rebuilding job in the Championship, and there have been some optimistic noises on that score in that last couple of weeks with senior players privately hinting they believe the Spaniard could stay no matter what and rumours of some long-term plans to secure a base in the North-East.
Would Benitez have saved Newcastle if he had been given more than 10 games?
Benitez admitted that the tension of fighting to survive got to his side at Villa Park. “The players were tense and we couldn’t do what we wanted. We need them and I think the players deserve a little credit for taking that step toward them again”.
Villa fans reveled in Newcastle’s misfortune; the chance to make life more miserable for another huge club the only thing left to amuse them after their own dismal campaign.
Fans booed their usual targets, including Joleon Lescott and Leandro Bacuna and several hundred staged a protest against the Birmingham club’s hierarchy before kick-off.
The result against Newcastle ended a sequence of 11 consecutive defeats, Villa narrowly avoiding setting a new club record for successive league losses.
But during the game the atmosphere was more light-hearted.
“They [Villa] were so defensive, they didn’t want to score goals”.
He clarified the quote a few years later, insisting he was talking about their style of play under David Moyes and not the club’s historical stature, but Toffees supporters have never forgotten that comment.
“A good result is obviously important but for me the most important part is getting the supporters back on side before the end of this season and for the start of next season”.
“We need them and I think the players deserve credit for taking these little steps back towards them under hard conditions”.
Advertisement
“I think that we didn’t play well, maybe because we had too much anxiety”, he said.
