Rafa Benitez reveals his thoughts on Rolando Aarons, Jacob Murphy and his selection dilemma at Newcastle

The Newcastle United winger is yet to play a minute of Premier League football this season.

But Benitez is without the injured Christian Atsu for this evening’s game against Manchester United.

Newcastle’s manager will choose between Aarons, Jacob Murphy and Ayoze Perez. Aarons scored for the club’s Under-23s during the international break, and Benitez has been watching him closely in training.

“I was watching the other day when Rolando was playing for the Under-23s and keeping an eye on him – both in that game and in training,” said Benitez.

“I was also watching Jacob training. Ayoze was also playing as a winger last year, so I was watching all the options and analysing what we can do.

“We’ll see because it’s a massive game against a good team. But the players they have to give everything. Sometimes it’s not about whether they do well now, or if they are at the level you are expecting – it’s if they give everything.

“We were practising this week with all of them and giving them tips about what they need to do. If they try to do these things, they will still make maybe some mistakes, because they are young players – that’s the point.

“Some of them are young players without experience in the Premier League, so it’s a question of time.”

On Aarons, Benitez added: “He’s training well, he is pushing in the right way.

“He’s trying to do his best in every training session, and I’ve been talking with him.

“When he played for the Under-23s I was watching the game, analysing things, and then after telling him he has to do this or that.

“It is a question of time. because he’s a young player.”