Rafa Benitez reportedly offered big-money deal to move to Chinese Super League

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Rafa Benitez has been offered a lucrative route out of Newcastle United by Chinese Super League club Dalian Yifang, according to the Times.

They report that the mega-rich club are keen on Benitez and want to make him the highest-earning manager in the division amid his uncertainty at Newcastle.

The report says that Benitez is on £6 million annually at St James’ Park, but the Chinese outfit are willing to double that salary to a whopping £12 million.

Benitez’s current Newcastle deal apparently runs out in 12 days, on June 30 and with takeover talks ongoing and no certainty over transfer policy, the Spaniard has not yet penned an extension.

Benitez would not be at Newcastle if he was a cynical manager who chases money around without having any real connection to a club or the area it plays in.

Part of his appeal to Newcastle fans is how much he has made an effort to understand the club and how he stuck with them through relegation and underinvestment in the playing staff.

So it would be something of a shock if he threw that all away and traded it in for a job in what remains a footballing outpost.

But would anyone blame him for doubling his money and leaving the Newcastle chaos behind?