Howe on mission to show Newcastle are contenders

It is only two years since Eddie Howe attended his first Champions League match but now Newcastle's manager is on a mission to disrupt Europe's elite.

- Louise Taylor

As Barcelona arrived on Tyneside yesterday Hansi Flick's La Liga champions certainly displayed no sign of complacency. Indeed Flick warned of the "intensity" his players must be braced for at St James' Park tonight.

Flick recalls Paris Saint-Germain being overwhelmed here two years ago when they surrendered 4-1 to formidable yet still slightly naive opponents whose inexperience would ultimately spell group-stage elimination. Back then Newcastle, at times, looked a little bit like wide-eyed Champions League tourists; now they want to be seen as contenders.