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Very Specific Football Question No.39: How do Rafa Benitez’s plans compare with this time last year?

In the space of less than twelve months, Rafa Benitez has gone from the Champions League to the Championship, so how have his plans changed?

Very Specific Football Question No.39: How do Rafa Benitez’s plans compare with this time last year?

“It’s an emotional day, a very special one. I have worked very hard to achieve success and return home, which was an aim of mine. The cycle is completed but I hope it lasts a long time.”

Tears of joy were in Rafa Benitez’s eyes as he spoke these words after being appointed manager of his beloved Real Madrid this time last year.

But like a chimpanzee’s first ride on a Pinarello, the cycle didn’t last a long time. Twelve months on, Benitez has long been booted out of the Bernabeu and has instead agreed to lead Newcastle in the Championship, where the outlook is very different…

[ALAN SHEARER EXPRESSES SURPRISE AT BENITEZ'S DECISION]

Targets

2015
Benitez had ambitious plans last season, identifying three trophies he was aiming to win. “The Champions League, La Liga and Copa del Rey are our objectives, as Madrid must win each game,” he announced in June, and to be fair this target could be partly fulfilled because Real might win the Champions League this weekend. Rafa will be watching it on TV.

2016
Once again, Rafa finds himself as a club whose fans will demand victories every week. “Rotherham, Bristol City, Burton Albion, a club of Newcastle’s stature must beat them all,” you can expect him to announce soon.

Fixtures

2015
Saturday 21 November was the date Rafa drew a little circle around when the La Liga fixtures were released last summer. He smiled proudly as he felt the hand of destiny upon his shoulder - his first Clasico. Real Madrid v Barcelona at the Bernabeu. (Rafa lost 4-0.) Paris Saint-Germain, Malmo and Shakhtar Donetsk would Real’s Champions League opponents. Textbook.

2016
Friday 17 June is the day Rafa will find out when he’s playing Rotherham. Tuesday 11 August is another one for the diary as Rafa makes his debut in the first round of the Capital One Cup, where Grimsby and Cheltenham await. Rafa hasn’t even played in the second round of the tournament before, let alone the first round (his former clubs always got a bye due to European commitments) so he will be really excited about this one.

Pre-season

2015
Money-spinning tours to Australia and China and a high-profile mini tournament in Germany pitted Real against the likes of Bayern Munich, Roma, Man City, Tottenham and both Milan clubs. They conceded just two goals all pre-season. Impressive.

2016
No fixtures have been revealed yet, although you can bank on a trip to Gateshead at some point. Last time the Magpies were relegated they infamously kicked off their pre-season with a 6-1 defeat to Leyton Orient, so Rafa mainly needs to ensure that doesn’t happen again.

Newcastle manager Rafa Benitez
Newcastle manager Rafa Benitez

Transfers

2015
Just a quiet one by Real’s standards, with £23m spent on Danilo and another £22m on Mateo Kovacic. Tying down Sergio Ramos to a long-term contract was a bigger deal. Apart from that, Rafa spent most of his time telling Arsene Wenger to stop sending him texts about Karim Benzema.

2016
Moussa Sissoko, Andros Townsend, Giorginio Wijnaldum, Daryl Janmatt, Ayoze Perez, Tim Krul, Chancel Mbemba and Jonjo Shelvey are all good players, and they will probably all seek a move away from St James’s Park this summer. Steven Taylor will probably stick around though. Good old Steve.

Tactics

2015
Benitez inherited some big problems from Carlo Ancelotti when he replaced the Italian in the Madrid hotseat. Mainly, how on earth was he supposed to fit Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale into the same line-up? Plus there was Benzema and James Rodriguez wanting to play attacking roles too. And Isco. Total nightmare.

2016
Is Siem de Jong better than he looks? Could Florian Thauvin return rejuvenated from his loan spell? Is it maybe possible that, even though Papiss Cisse and Emmanuel Riviere are obviously rubbish, if you pair them together in the Championship they could become the country’s most devastating strike force? Should we buy Kevin Nolan? These are among the many questions for Rafa to ponder in the coming weeks. Total nightmare.