welcoming of the possibility of Rondo challenging him on certain issues.

Stats, quotes and expert opinion on Newcastles 2015/16 Premier League season, which saw them relegated... Finishing position: 18th (-3)Total points: 37 (-2) FA Cup: Third roundCapital One Cup: Third roundTop scorer: Georginio Wijnaldum (11)WhoScored top rating: Andros Townsend (7.35) Steve McClaren shows the strain Season reviewJonas Gutierrez joyously stripped off his shirt as Newcastle saved themselves on the final afternoon of last term. But one soul-destroying season has been followed by another and this time there was no fumbled escape - despite a shock last-day thrashing of Spurs. The Championship awaits; the Toon Army must squeeze into Burtons 6,900-capacity stadium.In the cruellest twist, Sunderland rubber-stamped relegation but Newcastle fans will know their fate was sealed not on Wearside but rather in their own boardroom; a demise long set in motion by calamitous decisions, erratic recruitment and misplaced priorities.Steve McClaren - ominously named on the clubs football board - had talked up his dream job and his top-eight target. But Newcastle did not win until October and despite eye-catching victories against Liverpool and Norwich, still languished in the bottom three at the turn of the year. Defeats at Sunderland, West Ham and Crystal Palace - where a shambolic-looking side shipped five goals - were particularly damaging. Cup exits at the first hurdle felt familiarly depressing. Newcastle spent 206 days in the relegation zone After summers spree on players who looked good on paper, January brought more big-money arrivals. But while Andros Townsend offered rare hope for optimism until the end, defensive reinforcements that were desperately needed never came. McClaren clung on through February and into March but a home defeat to Bournemouth, the air thick with mutiny, finally prompted action from above. Rafa Benitez, swayed by the rush of the Premier League and struck by the clubs potential, took on a 10-game gamble and it so nearly paid off. But though the man who had started the campaign managing Real Madrid egos guided Newcastle to their best run since November 2014, this was like 2009 again: too little, too late.Newcastle are back in the second tier for the second time in maligned owner Mike Ashleys nine-year tenure. How they hope Benitez - hailed by fans throughout the final fixture - will get the assurances he needs to revive the club he pertinently noted needs to wake up. Rafael Benitez was unable to inspire a late surge to safety Quotes of the seasonJudge me after 10 games … judge me after 12 games … judge me at the end of the season. - McClaren, laying down one marker and then another…Listen, Ill put my house on it that Newcastle will not go down, - former chairman Freddy Shepherd in February.This is the most frustrating team Ive worked with. We see fantastic performances from individuals one week and we look capable of beating anyone, then the next week its the polar opposite and we can lose by five or six goals, - beleaguered Steve McClaren speaking after a 5-1 thrashing at Chelsea pushed his side back into the drop zone. We look at where it went wrong for McClaren at Newcastle in his own words Many of you have expressed strong views about what we could have done differently. I respect those views but I would like to reiterate that it has always been my intention to try to achieve the very best for Newcastle United, - owner Mike Ashley in a statement after relegation.My heart is obviously telling me yes. Its a fantastic opportunity, a fantastic atmosphere. My heart is very clear - but at the same time you have to use the brain. - Rafa Benitez, speaking to Sky Sports after a final-day rout of Tottenham. We take a look back at some of the most memorable quotes from the 2015/16 Premier League season Stats of the seasonNewcastles failure to find a victory in their first eight matches of the campaign made it their worst start to a season since 1898/99.Steve McClarens win ratio at Newcastle was just 22.6 per cent - the lowest of his career.Newcastle spent 206 days in the relegation zone - beaten only by Aston Villa and Sunderland.Only Manchester City had a bigger net spend than Newcastles £75m. £29m was splashed in January on Shelvey, Townsend and Henri Saviet - who played just 148 minutes of first team football.Phil Thompsons view Maybe if Rafael Benitez had come in earlier they might have stayed up but it was too little, too late. Phil Thompson Steve McClaren always had a difficult job. Theres more politics to it than we know, with player recruitment especially, and while Mike Ashley may have dug deep this season you have to look at whether theyve had the desire. McClaren was under massive pressure and didnt succeed because they were defensively dreadful. Maybe if Rafael Benitez had come in earlier they might have stayed up but it was too little, too late. Also See: Newcastle video Newcastle fixtures Newcastle stats Get a ￡10 free bet! Rob Dibble Jersey . Clarke was injured while practicing on the Doha Golf Club range after the pro-am on Tuesday. The Northern Irishman arrived at the course on Wednesday hoping to start, but after hitting a few balls on the practice putting green Clarke advised officials he was not fit to play. Benito Santiago Jersey . For the Wild it was their first win of the season and they now have a record of 1-1-2 while the Jets fall to 2-2. Jets start a six game home stand Friday with another divisional game, home to the Dallas Stars. https://www.cheapredsjerseys.us/2345s-jesse-winker-jersey-reds.html . 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CHICAGO -- Rajon Rondo has long been regarded as one of the most cerebral players in the NBA, but his ability to coexist with various coaches and teammates has been called into question at every stop during his professional journey. As the veteran point guard gears up for his 11th year in the league, this time as a member of the Chicago Bulls, the early returns have been surprising, given his track record.Bulls players, coaches and front-office personnel are singing his praises at every turn.The biggest thing that Ive been most impressed with with Rajon is, the minute he stepped on this floor, when he got back here in August, is he pulled everybody together, Bulls head coach Fred Hoiberg said after Tuesdays practice. His voice -- hes got the best voice on the team.When you have your point guard out there that can get you into something and talk the way he does, that sets the tone for everybody. If you got a guy not only offensively getting you into something, but defensively making sure guys are pointing and talking and getting back and getting matched up in transition, thats where it starts. Hes been here. Hes been great. Hes a guy that [you] can watch film with -- in September before we got rolling here in camp. Hes been great, and today he got us off to a great start.It remains to be seen whether Rondo can maintain that level of both communication and production throughout the entire season, but Hoibergs words have been echoed for weeks by front-office personnel who have watched the impact the 30-year-old has had since signing with the Bulls in July. Rondo has set a tone for his teammates day after day in pre-training camp workouts that the young group is following. Rondo said during Mondays media day that he spent three hours talking to Hoiberg before signing with the Bulls, noting that Hoiberg was really intelligent. The plaudits being tossed Rondos way have come from all corners of an organization in desperate need of a stabilizing point guard presence after dealing with Derrick Roses injury woes for years.Hes super smart, Bulls All-Star swingman Jimmy Butler said. I think he really sees things before they even develop out there on the basketball floor, so it makes everybodys job a lot easier. And not only is he leading the team on offense, but hes constantly talking on defense, so hes letting everybody know where they have to be. And then [free-agent signing Dwyane] Wades the same way, so he makes everybodys job easier as well, and you learn from that, so you just follow suit for the most part.When the Bulls signed Rondo, the front office highlighted the fact that he was coming off a season in which he shot a career-high 36.5 percent on 3-pointers, but it is Rondos ability to see the floor and get his teammates involved that the Bulls are banking on. He averaged 11.7 assists per game a year ago, tying a career high, and sounds confident he will set up the Bulls offense the way Hoiberg wants.I think if you followed me in my career, thats what I do best, Rondo said. Its making guys jobs a lot easier. Thats what I do. Its not a concern if I will be able to do that. Its just a matter of us buying into tthe system, continuing to run the floor and getting stops defensively.ddddddddddddButler has been struck so much by Rondos passing acumen that he has already offered up an apology for events that havent even transpired on the floor yet.Ill tell you right now, Ill apologize to Rajon early, Butler said. Hes going to fake me out with one of them damn passes. Hes going to do something crazy, and Im going to take off getting back on defense and the balls going to be coming to me in the corner. Its just incredible, because he sees everything. Oh, the defender took a wrong step this way, and Im like, Welp, hes going to shoot a layup, but he wants you to get a basket, man. And thats an incredible feeling. So Im sorry, Rajon, because youre going to definitely get a turnover from me one game.The Bulls were criticized throughout many corners of the league for signing Rondo over the summer, in large part due to his reputation for not being able to fit in well at times in various locker rooms. But Butler and the rest of his teammates dont sound concerned that Rondo will fracture the foundation the group is trying to build in Hoibergs second season. Butler, who struggled to gain footing in the Bulls locker room last season as the unquestioned leader of the team, is outwardly welcoming of the possibility of Rondo challenging him on certain issues.Im good with that, Butler said. I better challenge him right back if I see something hes not doing correctly. I want him to hold me accountable, me to hold him accountable. Everybody holding everybody accountable. Because then everybodys going to learn from their mistakes, theyre not going to do it again. But if you dont speak up on it and tell somebody what theyre doing, they dont know theyre doing anything wrong, so theyll just keep doing it.Ultimately, whether Rondos signing is a success or failure depends on the bottom line of wins and losses -- as is the case with any transaction in professional sports. But in order to do that, Rondo has to prove his critics wrong and show that he can help fit in with star players -- and big egos, like those of Wade?and Butler -- and mesh with younger players in the process. Hoiberg admitted that some of the Bulls young core has already started gravitating toward Rondo over the first few weeks of the new year. What will be more interesting to watch as the season progresses is whether Rondo -- and Wade -- can impart some of their championship wisdom toward Butler as the 27-year-old tries to elevate his status as a star player.Both Butler and the Bulls organization are trying to focus on how Rondo can help them in the present and future, not on any mistakes he might have made in the past.When you put good basketball players out there on the floor, you just go, Butler said. Everything falls into place, falls into line. You dont have to worry about too much of anything. And with him, hes an incredible leader, and he just wants everybody to be successful and hes going to put you in a position for you to do just that. ' ' '