Benitez coy on Newcastle future

Rafael Benitez refused to commit his future to Newcastle despite securing promotion back to the Premier League.

Benitez agreed a three-year deal to remain in charge of the Toon Army following their relegation to the Sky Bet Championship last May and under his guidance the club became only the second relegated side to go up automatically at the first attempt.

The Spaniard's future at St James's Park was a hot topic after Monday's 4-1 win to Preston North End but he refused to guarantee he would still be in charge come August, warning the board that they will need to invest if they are to have any chance of avoiding an immediate return to the Championship.

"You never know, that is football," Benitez said when asked about his future. "I am really pleased to be here, and really happy and proud for everything we have achieved.

"Hopefully we can put in the foundations for something that will be a guarantee for the future. The fans have been amazing with me, their loyalty means everything.

"Having this city behind you means everything. They should have a top team. That is why I decided to stay, and now I am even happier than before that I made this decision. I am really proud and really pleased.

"Now is the time to enjoy what we have done. But then I must make sure we do the right things.

"We have to prepare everything to be strong enough for the Premier League."

He went on: "The fans have been amazing with me. For loyalty, for everything it means to be at a top side like this with the city behind, I decided to stay.

"Now I am even more happy than before to have made this decision, and really proud and really pleased.

"I am really proud of everyone because we knew that was difficult. At the beginning when everyone was saying, 'Rafa has no experience in the Championship, it will be tough', it was right, it was very difficult."

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