Speaking ahead of the second leg, Howe emphasised that his players are now accustomed to the pressure of elite European football. "You can’t shrink at the size of the game, and I don’t think we will. We have got many players who have played in so many games now; we have become accustomed to it," the manager asserted.
After a Yamal penalty in added time denied them victory at St James' Park in the first leg, Howe will approach the second leg with confidence and said a win would be his biggest career victory: "It probably would be, yeah, but it’s irrelevant because that’s the outcome and we’re in the preparatory phase. We have to make sure our game plan, tactical delivery and individual performances are at the right level. We have another massive, massive game at the weekend [against Sunderland], so I don’t want to heap too much pressure on the players. I just want them to try to execute the best performance they can.
“We have many, many internationals in the squad so I don’t see [shrinking] as an issue. We have enough players who can cause them problems. We’ll enjoy the game, but we’ll only truly enjoy it if we deliver. I think we’re in a good place to do that, and the players are probably as confident as they’ve been in any stage this season."