Rafa: ‘Newcastle don’t have to sell players’

Newcastle manager Rafa Benitez insists that the club does not have to sell stars like Andros Townsend and Moussa Sissoko despite relegation.

The Spaniard has promised that he is looking to strengthen rather than weaken his squad ahead of a Championship campaign.

When asked by the Newcastle Evening Chronicle how many players he is looking to sign, he said: “It is always dangerous to give a number and I won’t do that.

“What we are focused on is making sure we keep and build a very strong squad for the Championship so that we can compete well and get back into the Premier League the season after.

“We don’t have to sell, that is clear, unless we think it is the right thing to do for the club and for the squad.

“But also the level of performance that the team showed at the end of the season makes me feel sure that we have already the basis of a good team for next season.

“I can assure fans that the business we are doing at the moment and that we will be doing over the next few weeks is all aimed at making the squad stronger than it is at the moment.”