2026-03-10 11:12:35
Eddie Howe has urged his Newcastle players to create history against Barcelona in the Champions League.
The Magpies entertain Barca in the first leg of their last 16 tie on Tuesday (10.03.26) and Howe wants a night to replicate the team’s famous 3-2 victory over the Catalan giants back in 1997.
Howe said: “You couldn’t not watch that game. It was on terrestrial television. It was one of those legendary games.
“You want people in future years to be talking about this team. Tino Asprilla gets the hat trick, a couple of them from Keith Gillespie’s delivery on the right. I want our players to be talked about in the same way, 20, 30, 40 years later.”
This is the first time that Newcastle have appeared in the Champions League knockout stages and Howe feels the match is “the biggest game in the club’s history”.
He said: “It’s an opportunity to grab a moment that we may never get again. You never know what life brings tomorrow, let alone future seasons. We don’t want to waste that opportunity. We don’t want to kick ourselves or think, ‘What if?’ This is a moment for us to grab.”
Newcastle were beaten 2-1 by Barca when the sides met in the league phase in September and Howe says his players will need to be at their “absolute best” if they are to change their fortunes this time around.
The manager said: “We’re going to need to break new ground in terms of performance level, so if there’s a time for us to be at our absolute best, it’s in these two games.”
Meanwhile, Newcastle full-back Lewis Hall is eager to test himself against Barcelona’s teenage sensation Lamine Yamal.
The defender said: “I think it goes without saying he’s obviously a special talent. I’ve seen him play in enough Champions League games. I know what he’s about. So for me, if I was to be selected, I’d be really looking forward to it.”
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