Benitez was left angry and frustrated at Ashley’s failure to back him in the transfer window, fuelling fears he could quit.
The Spaniard was quickly installed as favourite to take over at West Ham if the east Londoners axe under-fire boss Slaven Bilic.
But despite his uneasy relationship with the club hierarchy, Benitez insists he’s loving life at St James’ Park and the bond he has with the Toon Army.
He said: “The North East already feels like home for me. I was made to feel so welcome by everybody at the club, the supporters and the city from my very first day.
“I believe it is important to embrace a city and its people and I am grateful to have such a positive relationship with our fantastic supporters.
“I have always felt very welcome at this club. All I can do is continue to work hard every day and try my best to give them a team to be proud of.
“The fans are the motivation in everything that we do and I am really glad we could make them happy last season.
“We know this season will be tough in the Premier League but with the fans on our side, it gives us a better chance of achieving our targets.”
Benitez has twice previously had to make decisions on his immediate future – following relegation last year and again in May when he received lucrative job offers from China.
And he revealed it was daughters Claudia and Agata, who convinced him to stay at Newcastle.
Benitez told lifestyle magazine North East Times: “My family wanted me to stay in England after time away in Italy and Spain.
“And it is true my daughters were showing me what the fans were saying on social media at the time.
“They were looking on different social networks and saying: ‘You have to stay and win for these people – the fans love you here!’
“I have always said the fans were one of the reasons I decided to stay and for my family, the comments they were seeing helped them to see it could be the right place for me.”
