RAFAEL BENITEZ accepts it will be impossible to keep all of his Newcastle United players happy this season, but argues that is a price worth paying if it ensures the Magpies return to the Premier League at the first time of asking.

Benitez brought in 12 new signings during the summer, and while there were plenty of high-profile exits in the same period, the Spaniard can boast the deepest pool of talent in the Championship by a considerable distance.

His fondness for rotation means players will always feel they have a chance of forcing their way into the starting line-up, but on any given match-day, there will inevitably be some high-profile names who find themselves restricted to substitute duties. Others will not even be included in the squad.

That can create tension, and while things have not boiled over yet with the season just two months old, Benitez fully expects to be having some difficult conversations before the end of the campaign. He would rather that, though, than be scrambling around trying to put together a team once injuries and suspensions start to bite.

“We have 27 players,” said the Newcastle boss. “It is impossible to have 27 players who are happy if they do not play.

“At this stage of the season we are doing well and everything is fine, but if you carry on and some players don’t play too much, they will not be happy. But I do not want players who are happy not to be playing.

“What I want is players who are competing with a positive competition on the pitch in every game and every training session to give me a decision to make. After, it depends how mature they are and what the ambitions of the player are.”

Two summer arrivals in particular will be particularly disappointed at their lack of game time in the opening two months of the season.

Grant Hanley had aspirations of being appointed Newcastle captain when he completed a £6m move from Blackburn Rovers, but the centre-half, who is currently on international duty with Scotland, has not made a single Championship start since struggling at Fulham on the opening weekend of the season, with Jamaal Lascelles, Ciaran Clark and Chancel Mbemba all seemingly ahead of him in the pecking order.

At the other end of the field, Daryl Murphy must have envisaged regularly leading the line when he agreed to swap Portman Road for St James’, but the Irishman is yet to feature in the league, with his only appearance having come in the EFL Cup.

Both players boast extensive experience, and Benitez will have to manage them carefully if their involvement does not markedly increase in the next few months.

The same could be true of Ayoze Perez and Aleksandar Mitrovic, who established lofty reputations in the Premier League last season, but who have made just six league starts between them in the current campaign.

Benitez will continue to monitor the morale levels within his squad closely, and has hinted he could be prepared to shuffle his pack again in January if he feels there is risk of some fringe players becoming disruptive.

“Some will understand that another player is better than them and understand (why they are being left out,” he said. “Some will think they are young and have time to develop and will be patient.

“But some will say they want to play and say they cannot stay here. It is very difficult to keep everyone happy if you are not winning.

“If you are winning, even if you win this competition or that, it is not true that the players are as happy as if they were playing. They are happy because they are winning, but they still want to play.”

Benitez has been nominated for the Sky Bet Championship Manager of the Month Award for September, along with Sheffield Wednesday’s Carlos Carvahal, Norwich City’s Alex Neil and Reading’s Jaap Stam.