AC Milan (H) Pre-match thoughts, team news, possible line-ups & prediction
It's been a tough few days for Newcastle United, who lost by an aggregate score of 7-1 last week, but we all know how quickly things can change in football.
After a blip in the league and ongoing concerns over our away form, we return to St James' Park for a Champions League decider against AC Milan.
Put simply, these are the permutations heading into the game, followed by Eddie Howe's brilliant comments ahead of Wednesday's 8pm kick-off under the lights.
- We’ll come 2nd if we win and PSG don’t win at Dortmund (a PSG draw sees us pip them on H2H)
- We’ll come 3rd if we win and PSG win
- We’ll come 3rd if we draw
- We’ll come 4th if we lose
Eddie Howe's pre-match press conference:
"We are desperate to stay in this competition first and foremost. Our intention is to do everything we can to try and win the match. We worked so hard to get to this position in the first place, we gave everything last year to try and achieve this level of football, we do not want to give it away lightly.
"Being under the lights here, in the UEFA Champions League, is always very special. We have something to play for, something to gain. To be here with some kind of destiny in our hands, European football still in our hands, I think we would have taken that at the start of the group. We can control our performance tomorrow and we will make sure we give everything we can to try and win."
"The fans have been there for us this season, we are going to need every voice, every person can make a difference for us. We need to create an atmosphere, the supporters have never let us down at home. They have really driven us on, in tight games, they have really given us the ability to carry on. We are going to need that again.
“Let's make it a magical European night. They (the fans) can only do so much, so we have to do our bit for them.”
Team news
Anthony Gordon and Sean Longstaff should be fine despite failing to train on Tuesday and Callum Wilson is fit again, but Martin Dubravka (shoulder) is a doubt, with the game coming slightly too soon for Dan Burn and Harvey Barnes. It's not clear where Sven Botman is at after Howe's tight-lipped 'update' on Tuesday.
Nick Pope, Elliot Anderson, Jacob Murphy and Matt Targett remain absent with longer term injuries, while Sandro Tonali will miss out against his former club as he continues to serve his suspension for gambling.
For Milan, Rafa Leao and Okafor look set to return, but Thiaw, Bennacer, Kalulu, Kjær, Sportiello, Caldara, Romero and Pellegrino are absent, with the Serie A giants struggling for fit centre-backs.
Predicted line up
(4-3-3): Karius – Trippier, Lascelles, Schar, Livramento – Longstaff, Guimaraes, Joelinton – Almiron, Isak, Gordon.
Prediction
We may be going through a tough patch and have struggled on the road this season, but we're a different animal at St James' Park - especially under the lights and in need of a response following two straight defeats.
This side has bags of character, we have a couple of players back, will be wounded animals from that pathetic decision in PSG and the atmosphere promises to be electric.
Who knows if a win will see us into the last 16 or secure a Europa League spot instead, but I see us taking three points and finishing the group phase with a big performance, leaving all eyes on Dortmund who may need to do us a favour.
NUFC Blog prediction: Newcastle 2-0 AC Milan
HWTL!
