Rafa Benitez Orders Players to Ignore TV Pundits But Admits He Wishes He Could Sign One

Rafa Benitez has urged his Newcastle players to mute their televisions whenever pundits analyse the Magpies' performances, unless it's Alan Shearer.

Benitez's side have been on the end of some damning verdicts so far this season, having started the season disastrously. 

They have only registered the single victory, a 1-0 win over Watford on Saturday. Top pundits across the country have claimed that Newcastle’s squad is not strong enough to stay up in the Premier League this season.

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To help his squad avoid this, Benitez has ordered that his players mute their televisions when pundits speak about Newcastle. He joked, however, that the only pundit they should listen to is Newcastle legend and former manager Alan Shearer.

"It's time to switch the volume off the TV and just watch the games," said Benitez, as quoted by the Daily Mail. 

"We don't need to read too much press and we need to just concentrate on football. If we could add players we could increase competition.

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"Everybody has an opinion. But the main one for me is Alan Shearer so maybe I will try to sign him and play him up front! Unfortunately I can't. We have what we have and we have to make sure we get the best from this group of players."

Benitez also sent a message to the supporters, asking for their help to drive the team on,  following their first Premier League victory. 

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"Our fans are clever," he added. "They know the team needs them. Hopefully, we score goals and win games."