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MANCHESTER: Newcastle United must overcome the might of Paris St-Germain and a mounting injury list if the Magpies’ first foray into the Champions League for 20 years is not to come to a premature end on Tuesday.
In Tuesday’s other matches, Borussia Dortmund, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid can confirm a berth in the last 16 if they manage to win their respective matches, while defending champions Manchester City, who have a 100 per cent record in the Group ‘G’, only need a draw on Tuesday to seal a top spot ahead of RB Leipzig, who are also assured of their place in the knockout phase.
Newcastle’s back-to-back defeats against Dortmund have left Eddie Howe’s men sitting bottom of a devilishly difficult Group ‘F’, also featuring last season’s semi-finalists AC Milan.
Newcastle must avoid defeat in the French capital to have any chance of reaching the last 16.
Qualification looked well within the grasp of Howe’s side when they hunbled PSG 4-1 on Tyneside in October.
But things have since unravelled for Newcastle as an injury crisis has taken its toll despite the club being backed by the riches of the Saudi sovereign wealth fund.
The club’s marquee summer signing, Sandro Tonali, has been slapped with a 10-month ban for breaching betting rules during his time with Milan while
Harvey Barnes has spent most of the campaign out injured since his switch from Leicester City.
Sven Botman, Dan Burn, Callum Wilson, Joe Willock and Sean Longstaff are among the other key players likely to miss out again at the Parc des Princes.
However, the fear for Howe is that his depleted squad have already emptied the tank ahead of facing a PSG side led by Kylian Mbappe with revenge and a place in the last 16 in their sights.
PSG manager Luis Enrique said that they will approach their clash against the Magpies like a final.
“The Parc des Princes will carry us, I expect a great atmosphere. We really need the fans, we need a warmer and more passionate stadium than normal,” Luis Enrique told a press conference.
“We will play this game like a final. At this level, home games are key matches. The public is a special asset for us, we expect incredible support.”
The Group ‘F’ leaders Dortmund will be up against AC Milan and will be looking to secure qualification in the next round with a victory against their Italian counterparts.
Speaking at Dortmund’s AGM on Sunday, club CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke contrasted his side’s performances in the league with their showings in Europe.
“We are in first place in the (Champions League) group which cannot be over-estimated. The group is fragile and anything can happen,” he said. “On Tuesday, we have a chance to qualify early with a win. I wouldn’t have dared to dream of that at the time of the draw. That’s the truth.”
Dortmund drew the reverse fixture 0-0 with Milan in October and another draw, or a loss, would most likely mean the German side need to beat Paris at home in December to progress.
Meanwhile, Atletico are depending on the red-hot Antoine Griezmann to book them a place in the knock-out rounds at Feyenoord.
After finishing bottom of their group last season Atletico are desperate to progress and know they face a fierce battle at De Kuip in the Netherlands, with the hosts fighting to avoid elimination.
Atletico lead Group ‘E’ on eight points, one ahead of Lazio and two up on third-placed Feyenoord, and a win would send them through.
Griezmann, who scored a fine header against Mallorca to take Atletico third in La Liga on Saturday, is in superlative form.
The French forward has nine goals in the Spanish top flight, only trailing the division’s top goalscorer, Real Madrid’s Jude Bellingham, and has netted four in four Champions League matches thus far.
He has eight goals and two assists in his last seven games for the club, across all competitions.
Griezmann played the full 90 minutes against Mallorca with coach Diego Simeone unable to rest the forward as his team had to fight until the end to take the three points.
“It’s difficult to think about taking him off,” said Simeone. “He’s so important to us, it’s a shame that he always, or almost always, plays 90 minutes.”
Meanwhile, Barcelona coach Xavi Hernandez said Tuesday’s match at home to FC Porto could be a potential “turning point” for his side as they look to clinch a place in the last 16.
The Catalans missed the chance to qualify from Group ‘H’ with two games to spare when they suffered a shock 1-0 loss to Ukraine’s Shakhtar Donetsk in Hamburg at the start of November.
However, a victory over second-placed Porto at home will send Barcelona through to the knockout phase and lift some of the tension after a stuttering run of form over the past month.
“We need to be very demanding of our ourselves and be self-critical, because we’re no longer at the same level we were a month and a half or two months ago,” Xavi told a press conference.
“Tomorrow is a great opportunity. We can confirm our place in the round of 16 after five matches. It could be a turning point.”