Rafa Benitez is looking for another job.
The former Newcastle United manager having been sacked by Panathinaikos.
This time, Rafa Benitez lasting less than seven months in the job.
Back on 24 October 2025, Panathinaikos announced:
‘Rafa Benitez is the new coach of Panathinaikos. The great Spanish coach takes up his duties immediately. Panathinaikos FC announces the start of its collaboration with one of the most successful coaches in world football and the top coach to ever come to a Greek team, Rafa Benitez!’
A less positive tone and announcement now from the Greek club.
‘Panathinaikos FC announces the completion of its collaboration with coach Rafa Benitez. We thank the Spanish coach and his staff for the professionalism and ethos they brought to our club during their time with the team. We wish Rafa Benitez every success in the rest of his professional career.’
Exactly what will be Rafa’s professional career moving on…
Panathinaikos ended the season fourth in the table, 20 points off the top. He did guide them to the semi-finals of the Greek Cup and the last 16 of the Europa League but that not enough to save his job.
Panathinaikos claimed to be looking at Jacob Neestrup as the Rafa Benitez replacement, he was sacked by FC Copenhagen in March (2026).
As for Rafa Benitez, it has been one disaster after the next after Mike Ashley forced him out of Newcastle United.
Thanks partly to the impact of Covid, his move to Dalian Professional ended up not working out.
His biggest mistake though was surely going to Everton. Their fans behaving disgracefully, death threats even before he took the job and then constant abuse across the six and a half months he was there.
Less than ninth months before the sack at Spanish club Celta Vigo and now less than seven months in Greece.
At the age of 66 maybe Rafa Benitez will be calling time on his managerial career.
I have always thought he would work well as a Sporting Director or similar, helping a club across their whole structure and using his vast experience in that way.
It all makes you wonder how different things may have been if the Newcastle United takeover had happened earlier, when Rafa Benitez was said to be the preferred choice of the consortium. By the time the takeover did happen, Rafa Benitez was just over three months into his ill-fated stay at Everton.