Eddie Howe is determined to make arch-rivals Sunderland pay for Newcastle’s Champions League heartache.
Howe 100% focused on Tyne-Wear derby
Asked how he picked himself up after such a bruising end to what at times promised to be a special night in Barcelona, Howe said: “I’ve got no problem picking myself up, it’s more the players. I’m able to move quite quickly through things, the game and the review process, to then think of the future very quickly.
“Now it’s all about Sunderland, it’s not about what’s happened. It’s about learning from it and evolving and changing if we need to.
“It’s about the next game and making sure we’re mentally ready, physically ready for what’s going to be a huge game for us and for the whole city, so I think that’s quite a good game for us to go straight into because there’s no time for any other thought than that.”
Howe
Even had the Magpies returned having booked a place in the last eight of Europe’s most prestigious club competition, the stakes would have been just as high this weekend after their 1-0 defeat at the Stadium of Light in December.
Newcastle simply did not turn up that day as they slipped to a seventh defeat in 10 league outings against their neighbours courtesy of record signing Nick Woltemade’s own goal and Howe, who guided his side to a 3-0 FA Cup win at Sunderland in January 2024, is well aware of what is at stake.
“It was a bad, bad feeling. I’d never scored an own goal before. I was thinking - wow, maybe the fans will destroy me! But when I came into the dressing room, I looked at my phone and saw only good messages, which helped me a lot - because of course I understand it was a very important game. I was so thankful, it showed me I’m in the right place.” - Nick Woltemade
He said: “It’s huge. There’s no point talking about it though, we’ve just got to play. We’ve got to play like our lives depend on it.
“It’s such a big game for the city, for our supporters, for everyone connected with the club. We know that. We knew it before the first game and we know it even more now.
“We need to deal with this very quickly and then move on to Sunday.”
Newcastle United's Anthony Gordon applauds fans after the match Related
Newcastle now making aggressive move to sign £60m forward with Anthony Gordon likely to leave
Gordon's future is in doubt...
Midfielder Sandro Tonali is a doubt for the derby after he limped off in the defeat to Barcelona with a groin problem, and the Italian is one of many Magpies whose future is in doubt this summer.
Newcastle set for summer overhaul with four signings lined up
Mark Douglas shared an update on the futures of several Newcastle stars for iNews, revealing the club are braced for interest from several of the traditional 'big six' in not only Tonali, but also Bruno Guimaraes and Tino Livramento.
Newcastle's Tino Livramento
PIF are not resting on their laurels however, and are set to embark on a spending spree of their own, with plans to bring in a new goalkeeper, striker, right-back and midfielder.
Not only that, Douglas reports they want starting calibre signings in all four positions, meaning a significant outlay is on the cards.
Whether that will require the sale of someone like Tonali, who is attracting interest from Arsenal and Liverpool, remains to be seen, but it seems PIF are set to provide Howe with serious backing just 12 months after spending over £250m on new arrivals last summer.