Newcastle United play their best football when they attack

Rafa Benitez must alter his tactics to enable Newcastle United to attack opponents more frequently.

Due to their rigorous schedule to start the 2018-19 campaign, Rafa Benitez decided to play it safe by deploying defensive formations with the hopes of stealing a point here and there. Now that the schedule is beginning to look favorable, Newcastle United must play attacking football to claim some much-needed victories.

Upon the conclusion of this international break, Newcastle will face teams like Brighton, Southampton, Watford, Bournemouth, Burnley, West Ham and a few other mid-table opponents. In order for Newcastle to climb the table and avoid being labeled relegation favorites, they must take risks on offense and play attacking football for most of the match.

Attack-minded Newcastle

Newcastle have had their ups and downs this season, with the biggest issue being the lack of wins. When Newcastle play ultra-defensive football, all they are doing is stalling and inviting an inevitable goal late in the match.

We have seen this occur on multiple occasions this season, but the 2-1 loss to Chelsea is the best example. Yes, some teams do require more respect than others, but Newcastle should not pull all their players back and allow the opposition to create successive scoring opportunities. That simply cannot happen anymore going forward if the Magpies wish to close out matches with positive results.

Newcastle have struggled with consistency this season. There were some matches in which Newcastle looked horrible from start to finish and some matches where the Magpies looked bipolar. During this international break, Newcastle need to look back at film to emulate these specific performances in order to defeat their next few opponents:

• Second half vs. Tottenham
• First half vs. Arsenal
• First half vs. Manchester United

In the matches listed above, Newcastle looked like a team destined for a top ten finish. The Magpies played great in those matches because they took it to their opponents by pressuring defenders, spreading the field out wide, looking for open passing lanes and they created several chances to score.

If Newcastle was able to do that against the elite teams of the Premier League, their offensive efficiency and execution can be even better against mediocre opponents coming up on the schedule.

Benitez surely acknowledges that his team looks good when they are given the freedom to attack and he has to let his Magpies get forward a little more, especially against the weak defensive units of Brighton and Southampton later this month.