IN Rafael Benitez’s book, ‘Champions League Dreams’, the Newcastle boss outlines a mantra that helps guide his managerial philosophy: “Take care of everything, leave nothing to chance.”

So while it might seem strange that Benitez has started his summer rebuilding programme with the signing of a goalkeeper, when he already has four on his books, the move is perfectly in keeping with his wider approach to management.

Had he not agreed to pay £4.5m to sign Belgian goalkeeper Matz Sels from Gent, he would have been leaving things to chance.

Tim Krul is returning from a serious knee injury that sidelined him for all bar eight matches of last season, and only has a year remaining on his current deal. If the Dutchman proves his fitness in the next month or so, he will almost certainly be sold, with Everton currently leading a long list of potential suitors.

Rob Elliot also suffered a cruciate injury last season, and the Irishman will not be fit for the start of the new campaign. He could be available by the autumn, but his fitness will have to be taken on trust until he gets back into full training and starts to test out his knee. Even then, it will take a while for his sharpness to return, having missed the whole of pre-season.

So what does that leave Newcastle with? Karl Darlow, who did reasonably well in the final seven games of last season but had been regarded as a potentially weak link prior to that, and Freddie Woodman, who remains extremely inexperienced despite his obvious promise.

Newcastle’s goalkeeping staff regard Woodman as a potential star of the future, but there was a reluctance to expose him to first-team football last season and the preference at the moment is for him to spend next season on loan, ideally with a team in the Championship but possibly at a club in League One.

That didn’t leave Benitez with a lot of wriggle room, and the arrival of Sels, which should be confirmed within the next 24 hours, highlights a degree of foresight and planning that has not always been evident in the past.

Had Lee Charnley and Mike Ashley still been dictating transfer policy, it is unlikely that Newcastle would have been signing a goalkeeper when they already had four players who could theoretically fill that position. That, more than anything, was why they failed to adequately address their defensive deficiencies in the last two transfer windows, even though they ended up relying on players who were either injury-prone or had previously expressed a desire to leave.

Benitez wants to do things differently, and Sels’ arrival highlights that fact. It might not be the kind of ‘statement signing’ some fans had been wanting, but Newcastle have beaten off competition from Middlesbrough and Southampton despite their status as a Championship club, and have signed a player who was in Belgium’s provisional squad for Euro 2016, only to miss out at the final cut.

The deal also confirms that the assurances about “money being available to spend” were not empty promises, although Benitez’s satisfaction at completing his first signing will be balanced by an acceptance that some high-profile departures are just around the corner.

Andros Townsend looks certain to leave, with Crystal Palace set to formally trigger his £10.5m release clause imminently, and Georginio Wijnaldum, Moussa Sissoko and Florian Thauvin are all edging towards the exit door.

Replacing players of that calibre will not be easy, but Benitez will be hopeful of successfully plugging the gaps. As he prepares for life in the Championship, the Newcastle boss does not want to be leaving anything to chance.