Champions League football returns to Newcastle on Wednesday evening following a 20-year hiatus as head coach Luis Enrique brings his PSG to St James’ Park.
Enrique himself lined up alongside such esteemed players as Xavi, Sonny Anderson, Luis Figo, Rivaldo De La Pena, and Nadal against Newcastle Utd back in 1997 and scored in the 73rd minute to bring the deficit back to 3:1 in what was the magpies introduction to Champions league football; but his goal was certainly overshadowed by that Tino Asprilla hattrick as Newcastle ran out 3:2 winners.
Enrique arrives with a squad brimming with quality; names that rattle off the tongue just like those of the Barcelona squad 26 years ago. Names like Gianluigi Donnarumma, Achraf Hakimi, Manuel Ugarte, Marquinhos, Gonçalo Ramos, Ousmane Dembélé, Milan Skriniar, Lucas Hernandez and of course Kylian Mbappe.
Quality abounds throughout in this PSG squad, but their Achilles heel is often the pressure placed upon them from above to succeed in this competition.
It is no secret that the club owners Qatar Sports Investments (QSI) on behalf of Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, the Emir of Qatar, have made it their desire to win the biggest prize in club football but in 12 years that desire has struggled to bear fruit, despite acquiring an abundance of football talent along the way.
Neymar, Ibrahimovic, Cavani, Motta, Verratti, Rabiot, Draxler, Thiago Silva and Lionel Messi were all signed with the sole intention of delivering the riches QSI desired, but all failed on the big stage and the elusive prize still evades the envious Qatari owners.
And that pressure can pay a handsome dividend for a Newcastle team that is starting to show the sort of form that brought them to this point. A point away from home in their previous Champions League outing in the San Siro showed that they have the doggedness to hang in and thwart some of the best that Europe has to offer and with a run of five games without defeat and no goals conceded they and the St James’ faithful are relishing what the night has in store.
Eddie Howe meanwhile will be focussing on his line-up, with Joelinton, Joe Willock and Sven Botman ruled out and Sandro Tonali reportedly a doubt. Callum Wilson was seen at the training ground on Tuesday morning but there was no word coming out on his fitness.
The officials for this tie all come from Romania. The Referee is István Kovács. Assistant referees are Vasile Florin Marinescu and Ovidiu Artene, while the Fourth official is Marcel Birsan.
VAR is used in the Champions league and the Video Referee is Marco Fritz from Germany. His Assistant is Rob Dieperink from The Netherlands.
Enrique himself lined up alongside such esteemed players as Xavi, Sonny Anderson, Luis Figo, Rivaldo De La Pena, and Nadal against Newcastle Utd back in 1997 and scored in the 73rd minute to bring the deficit back to 3:1 in what was the magpies introduction to Champions league football; but his goal was certainly overshadowed by that Tino Asprilla hattrick as Newcastle ran out 3:2 winners.
Enrique arrives with a squad brimming with quality; names that rattle off the tongue just like those of the Barcelona squad 26 years ago. Names like Gianluigi Donnarumma, Achraf Hakimi, Manuel Ugarte, Marquinhos, Gonçalo Ramos, Ousmane Dembélé, Milan Skriniar, Lucas Hernandez and of course Kylian Mbappe.
Quality abounds throughout in this PSG squad, but their Achilles heel is often the pressure placed upon them from above to succeed in this competition.
It is no secret that the club owners Qatar Sports Investments (QSI) on behalf of Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, the Emir of Qatar, have made it their desire to win the biggest prize in club football but in 12 years that desire has struggled to bear fruit, despite acquiring an abundance of football talent along the way.
Neymar, Ibrahimovic, Cavani, Motta, Verratti, Rabiot, Draxler, Thiago Silva and Lionel Messi were all signed with the sole intention of delivering the riches QSI desired, but all failed on the big stage and the elusive prize still evades the envious Qatari owners.
And that pressure can pay a handsome dividend for a Newcastle team that is starting to show the sort of form that brought them to this point. A point away from home in their previous Champions League outing in the San Siro showed that they have the doggedness to hang in and thwart some of the best that Europe has to offer and with a run of five games without defeat and no goals conceded they and the St James’ faithful are relishing what the night has in store.
Eddie Howe meanwhile will be focussing on his line-up, with Joelinton, Joe Willock and Sven Botman ruled out and Sandro Tonali reportedly a doubt. Callum Wilson was seen at the training ground on Tuesday morning but there was no word coming out on his fitness.
The officials for this tie all come from Romania. The Referee is István Kovács. Assistant referees are Vasile Florin Marinescu and Ovidiu Artene, while the Fourth official is Marcel Birsan.
VAR is used in the Champions league and the Video Referee is Marco Fritz from Germany. His Assistant is Rob Dieperink from The Netherlands.
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