RAFAEL BENITEZ is hoping he will be afforded some greater leeway in the transfer market this summer after citing Newcastle United’s January additions as a key factor in the club’s surge away from the relegation zone.

Saturday’s 1-0 win over Huddersfield Town represented another huge step on the road to survival, with Newcastle now seven points clear of the drop zone with seven games remaining.

Their excellent goal difference means they are effectively eight points clear of 18th-placed Southampton, and with Ayoze Perez’s weekend match-winner having taken them to the 35-point mark, one more victory would almost certainly secure their top-flight status.

Benitez cut a frustrated figure when the transfer window closed last August, having been unable to recruit a number of his leading targets, but while he was hardly afforded a huge sum in January either, he was much more satisfied when the transfer deadline passed two months ago.

Islam Slimani’s impact might have been diminished by injury, but Martin Dubravka has been a revelation in goal, keeping clean sheets in three successive home games, and Kenedy has provided a valuable attacking threat from the left of midfield, with his weekend assist following hot on the heels of his two-goal salvo in last month’s 3-0 win over Southampton.

Benitez is keen to turn both players’ loan deals into permanent transfers in the summer, and will also be looking to make further improvements in both attack and defence.

As ever with Newcastle, the club’s off-field position is unpredictable, with Mike Ashley still hoping to engineer a sale before the start of next season. No matter who is in charge, though, Benitez will be desperate to avoid a repeat of last summer’s transfer inactivity.

“It’s not always a question of money,” said the Spaniard, after watching his side claim their ninth league win of the season. “That doesn’t always make the difference when it comes to signing the players you need.

“In January, when we were talking, we said we needed a goalkeeper, a winger and a striker, and that is what we did and you can see the difference. It is about doing the right things at the right time.”

It is also about working with what you have, and Saturday’s victory was another example of Benitez being able to extract the absolute maximum from the players in his squad.

Jamaal Lascelles delivered another masterclass at the heart of the back four – how the centre-half has failed to earn a call-up to Gareth Southgate’s England squad is a mystery – while Mo Diame continued his recent renaissance at the heart of midfield.

Tactically, Benitez’s players knew exactly what was being asked of them, and while previous Newcastle teams have amounted to considerably less than the sum of their parts, the current side is overachieving dramatically as eyes turn towards a finishing place in the top half of the table.

“It is the way we train,” said Benitez, when asked to account for Newcastle’s marked improvement in the second half of the campaign. “We don’t just coach, we try to teach players. They are learning what they have to do, and it is not just about this season, it is for the rest of their lives. You have to do this - they make ten runs, and they have to make the right ones.

“The main thing in a game like this is you know it is going to be very difficult. I was watching Liverpool against Crystal Palace, and as soon as they (Liverpool) have one chance, they can score because they pay £40m or £50m for players and those individuals can make the difference.

“For us, we are a team. Against Huddersfield, they are well organised, but they will not punish you like the top teams if you make a mistake. You have to keep control of the game, pass the ball and if they are organised, if you work really hard, you can make a difference.

“You can have a bad day and maybe they are the team that scores the goal, but for us it is important to work as a team and understand what we have to do.”

Newcastle boast a number of unsung heroes, and Saturday’s match-winner, Perez, unquestionably falls into that camp.

The Spaniard has flattered to deceive for long spells of his Magpies career, but his performances this season have reached a new level in terms of both consistency and end product.

He might not be the stereotypical ‘number ten’ in the mould of an Eden Hazard or David Silva, but his industry and energy make up for any deficiencies in terms of creativity, and as his weekend finish proved, he remains capable of producing a composed finish when it is most required.

“We have been talking about that number ten position for two seasons now,” said Benitez. “Some people are saying he is too lightweight and he gives the ball away, but he plays in a position where he often has a lot of players around him and he has to do difficult things.

“He has the movement and understanding of the game, and when we need something, for a player who plays between the lines of defence and midfield, he understands these things. We do not have more players like that.

“You can maybe play a game with two strikers, but you can lose control of the (opposition) holding midfielders and therefore the team. If you have a player who can play between the lines, they can be a threat in attack but they can also help defensively.

“A player who can link with the striker and be a threat in attack, they are difficult to find. Normally, a proper number ten would be a player with quality when they dribble, but they probably wouldn’t help out much in defence. Finding the balance between quality going forward and helping the team is difficult, but he is the player who can do that for us.”

With Southampton and Crystal Palace both losing at the weekend, Newcastle’s victory has taken them to the brink of safety with a home game against rock-bottom West Brom still to come.

Benitez has consistently cited the 40-point mark as his target, and is refusing to lower that goal. However, even he was forced to admit that Saturday’s win represented another major milestone on the road to survival.

“Forty points is the target, so we have to carry on,” he said. “We are happy with where we are, but we carry on.

“The main thing for us is to be sure we approach each game the same. It is one game at a time. We can win another game and, okay, we will be closer and then we can start thinking about other things. But still we have to play too many games against very difficult teams.”