RAFAEL BENITEZ has defended his constant rotation policy by declaring he holds the information that explains why in-form players are left out of Newcastle United’s promotion push.

The Magpies are up to third in the Championship and his decision to regularly mix his team up has heralded both positive and negative results so far this season.

Supporters have questioned some of the decisions at times, but Benitez insists there is always a reason for his selections even if they are often surprising.

He said: “We play the strongest team with all the information we have. Maybe I’ll make a mistake, but we’ll only know after the game.

“People will see ‘Matt Ritchie isn’t playing!’ But I know Christian Atsu was playing well – then he does well and I look like a genius! But if he doesn’t, it’s ‘Oh no’. People need to be reassured that we have a lot of information, we see them in training.

“For example, DeAndre Yedlin had problems in his ankles after tackles in the previous two games. We have Vurnon Anita, who is playing well and training well, so why not play him and give Yedlin a rest?

“We have a lot of information and we try to manage this information to put the strongest team on the pitch. We’re not improvising. We also have our software – after every game you will see me taking notes, well it goes into the software.

“It’s about the strengths and weaknesses of the team in those games and we can return to it after ten games and revisit it. We start working on that.”

Francisco de Miguel is Benitez’s trusted lieutenant and he provides the manager with the majority of the details. If he feels a change of system or formation could be required then he would suggest it.

“Paco (de Miguel) is assistant manager and fitness coach - he has a degree in physical education in Spain. Normally he controls the training sessions and regulates the load in training sessions,” said Benitez.

“When we change the team, sometimes it’s because we see a reason to change someone for someone else who is more suited. So we may get a left footer in because there is a weakness there.

“Or sometimes, it is because they are playing so many games we can see a risk. Paco is looking at that. We have an index after every game and after two or three games we know who is at risk. Paco is in charge of that with the doctor, who also knows what is going on.”

Benitez was keen to stress it is not just about his relationship with de Miguel behind the scenes. He said: “The coaching staff are very close to me. I don’t want to be unfair to anyone though - we’re all part of it, the analysis department, the communications department, the groundstaff - we have a lot of people here doing a great job. Everyone here is giving everything and I’m very happy with that.”

Coach Antonio Gomez Perez heads the analysis department, which condenses the information into 45 minutes before Benitez discusses things with the team. Mikel Antia organises the training sessions along with Benitez and Ian Cathro, while Simon Smith works with the keepers.

Benitez said: “The players follow you if everything is right and they see the message is right. The players understand football too. If you explain it right and say ‘you have to do this because this will happen’ and then it does, they will keep following you. But if you say ‘play long balls, we will be fine’ and you lose they will not follow you.

“People talk about the reputation of the manager. Maybe he is an ex-player with a big reputation. But after two or three months the name doesn’t matter. They only judge you on what is happening. They will only follow you if the message is right.

“You can be a big name but if the message is wrong, you have problems. Which is why it doesn’t matter what you have done - you have to keep working hard and getting it right.”

Benitez has explained how he feels it is important to trust the men he has working alongside him on the training ground.

He said: “When I was a young manager, I controlled everything. When I was assistant to Vicente del Bosque, I controlled everything. When you are getting older, you give out more responsibility. It’s easier, no?”

Benitez was pipped to the Sky Bet Championship manager of the month by Norwich City’s Alex Neill. The Canaries, who lost to Newcastle during the September, won four of their five league games and defeated Everton in the EFL Cup. Newcastle won three games – including the 4-3 Norwich triumph and 6-0 victory at QPR - and drew at Aston Villa.