Former Liverpool, Chelsea, Newcastle and Everton boss Rafael Benitez would like to get back into Premier League management
Rafa Benitez has had several Premier League spells over the past 20 years
Rafa Benitez will be waiting by the phone for any job offers that come his way from the Premier League this season - and the Spaniard is being realistic about what kind of level he is likely to go in at.
Benitez first arrived in England in 2004 with Liverpool, guiding them to the Champions League in his first season at the club and taking them close to repeating that triumph two years later.
Unpopular spells at Chelsea and Everton sat either side of a more respected stint as Newcastle United boss, interspersed with jobs abroad including Inter, Napoli, Real Madrid and most recently Celta Vigo.
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Rafa Benitez reveals he has turned down Premier League offers in the past but is now open to suggestion
Benitez is aware that he is unlikely to get a job at one of the Premier League's big clubs at this stage of his managerial career, but says he would need to 'make a decision' if a club further down the league wanted his services.
Speaking on the Stick to Football podcast, brought to you by Sky Bet, Benitez said: “I’m thinking about taking a job in the Premier League. That is not easy because I had offers – trust me, I had five or six offers from teams at the bottom of the table.
“I am realistic. I have the passion, I have the knowledge, I have the experience so I can make a difference. And the methodology, I like to be on the pitch coaching players and improving players, little things.
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Benitez most recently took charge of Everton in the Premier League (Image credit: Stephen Pond/Getty Image)
"Anthony Gordon is one of the examples, so we can improve players and make things happen.
“But, there are not too many [job offers at the top of the table]. Manchester United will not come for me, Chelsea will not come for me.
"So, there are teams that I will not coach because they will not come for me. Then, the teams at the middle of the table, bottom of the table, they start firing managers and then you have to make a decision.
"I want to coach in the Premier League, and then this team at the bottom of the table is coming with a project.”
Steven Chicken has been working as a football writer since 2009, taking in stints with Football365 and the Huddersfield Examiner. Steven still covers Huddersfield Town home and away for his own publication, WeAreTerriers.com. Steven is a two-time nominee for Regional Journalist of the Year at the prestigious British Sports Journalism Awards, making the shortlist in 2020 and 2023.
