Newcastle United will lock horns with Paris Saint-Germain in UEFA Champions League match at St. James Park on Wednesday since losing to Barcelona 2-0 in March 2003.
Eddie Howe’s side made a productive start to their European campaign with a 0-0 draw away to AC Milan but they must win their home games to stand any chance of progression from what is widely considered the dreaded ‘Group of Death’.
Therefore, it is going be a fantastic occasion at St. James Park as Kylian Mbappe and company roll into town.
PSG, who haven’t quite clicked in Ligue 1 under Luis Enrique just yet, have moved away from the superstars of Lionel Messi and Neymar and that new policy will be in for a stern test tonight.
However, it was a clean sheet for goalkeeper Nick Pope. He became the fifth English keeper to keep a clean sheet on his first UEFA Champions League start, and the first since Fraser Forster in 2012. No English keeper has ever kept a clean sheet in their first two starts in the competition before.
Paris Saint-Germain felt very much in a transition phase under new Spanish boss Luis Enrique. Some huge names have departed the club this summer, including Lionel Messi, Neymar, Sergio Ramos and Marco Verratti. They’ve been replaced by younger talent such as Hugo Ekitiké, Lee Kang-in, Gonçalo Ramos, Bradley Barcola and Randal Kolo Muani as well as more established and experienced stars like Milan Škriniar, Marco Asensio and Ousmane Dembélé.
Of course, they’ll be looking to captain Kylian Mbappé for inspiration on Wednesday night. The French striker has scored a UEFA Champions League goal against Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium, Manchester United at Old Trafford and Liverpool at Anfield. He could become the fourth player to score an away goal at four different English venues in the competition, after Cristiano Ronaldo (five), Lionel Messi (four) and Robert Lewandowski (four).
The injury problems are mounting for Newcastle as Joelinton and Callum Wilson are unlikely to feature after hamstring issues, while Sven Botman will also be missing. Joe Willock has not played all season and remains injured. Sandro Tonali, however, is fine.
For PSG, Mbappe got through the weekend game against Clermont Foot despite a recent ankle knock and looks set to start. Nuno Mendes is missing, along with Marco Asensio and Presnel Kimpembe.