Former Newcastle United manager Rafa Benitez has revealed that he wants a return to the Premier League.
The Spaniard has been out of a job since his disappointing spell as Everton manager came to an end in January 2022. He had been linked to the vacant post at Leicester City before Dean Smith was hired to steer the Foxes away from relegation.
According to the 63-year-old, he has had ‘several possibilities’ to join a new club throughout the season but that the proposed conditions were not acceptable, and he has chosen to wait for a better opportunity.
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Benitez has enjoyed successful spells winning trophies at Valencia, Liverpool and Newcastle but now sees his name linked with clubs towards the bottom half of the table. There have been other offers abroad, but his ‘preference’ is to remain in England.
“I have had several possibilities this season, but the conditions that I think are necessary were not there and I preferred to wait for another option,” Benitez told the Telegraph.
“I have also had proposals from outside, but our preference has always been the Premier League.”
With around seven or eight games remaining this season, the former Champions League winner will now have to wait until at least the summer before a job becomes available with teams unlikely to sack their coaches during the final run in.
Despite causing a number of issues amongst fans at other clubs, Benitez largely remains a fan favourite on Tyneside after he successfully brought the club back into the Premier League in 2017. The ex-Real Madrid man left the Magpies at the end of his contract in 2019 after a disagreement with Mike Ashley with Steve Bruce coming in as his replacement.
As an older manager whose style of play typically looks outdated in the modern game, it remains to be seen whether another Premier League club who meets his requirements will take the Spanish head coach on next season.
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