Key Newcastle player says he wouldn’t be at St James’ Park now without Rafael Benitez

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A key Newcastle United player has now revealed that he wouldn’t be at the club right now if it wasn’t for his former manager Rafa Benitez.

Fabian Schar was brought to the club nearly six years ago now by the Spaniard and he appreciates everything his former boss did for him to this day.

Following the announcement of his one-year contract extension, Schar was interviewed by NUFCTV in which he revealed that Benitez was the reason why he joined Newcastle in the first place.

Schar says he wouldn’t have joined Newcastle without Benitez

Schar was one of the first players Benitez signed for Newcastle in his third and final season at the club as he brought him over from Spanish club Deportivo La Coruna who had just been relegated to the second division.

Little did anyone know that the Swiss defender would stay at the club for the next six years becoming one of the best in the Premier League and starting regularly for Newcastle who now have Champions League ambitions.

Although he did go through a bit of a slump under Steve Bruce who didn’t really fancy him for his style of play, Schar just seems to be getting better with age.

It could all have worked out very differently however, if Benitez wasn’t at the club in the first place and the centre-back himself has openly admitted that he is the player he is today because of his former coach.

In the interview, Schar said: “He was the reason to come (to Newcastle). I had a great year under him. I was really thankful for what he did to me and the opportunity he gave me.

“Without him, I wouldn’t be here at the moment so he was a big person for me.”

Schar is one of the biggest bargains in Newcastle’s history

Costing the club just £3m back in 2018, Schar is bound to go down in history as one of if not the biggest bargain in Newcastle’s history, or perhaps at least in their recent history.

Centre-backs like Schar, who are so comfortable on the ball and are able to pick out a brilliant long-range pass, don’t come around often and they certainly aren’t cheap these days.

As previously mentioned, the 32-year-old only looks to be getting better every year and he has now made a good case for him to be Newcastle’s best defender this season, ahead of Sven Botman.

Even if the club do look to upgrade his position with a younger version for the future, you can still see Schar staying as a quality backup and a great leader to have in the dressing room at least for the next couple of years.