Newcastle United manager Rafa Benitez has leapt to the defence of striker Yoshinori Muto, who has come under criticism for his slow start to life at the club, according to a report on HITC.
The Japanese international joined the Magpies in the summer for £9.5m after impressing during the World Cup in Russia, but he is yet to prove his worth in the black and white stripes of Newcastle.
Muto has only been given 45 minutes of Premier League action so far this season by Benitez. However, he handed him a starting spot in the Carabao Cup but he failed to take his chance at impressing the fans and manager.
Benitez is not worried by Muto’s slow start at the club and believes that once the squad is fully settled, then he will show his quality.
He said:
I think he’s a striker. We are missing a couple of positions and he can play those so he has had to play in those. To be fair, he has been unlucky.
When he went on at Cardiff, we had to change the system and he had to go as a midfielder, and against Chelsea when we put him on the pitch, we changed to 4-1-4-1 at the end, so he had to go back too.
He was not playing in his ideal position in the games he has played.
Muto joined from Bundesliga club Mainz and is currently away on international duty with Japan as they face Chile and Costa Rica.
