Newcastle face Barcelona challenge at disadvantage after Eddie Howe’s ‘sour’ admission

Newcastle host Barcelona in their opening Champions League match on Thursday night after a tumultuous summer in which Eddie Howe fought hard to strengthen his squad

Newcastle are back in the big time on Thursday night, but not quite under the circumstances they would have hoped for.

The arrival of Barcelona at St James’ Park for a Champions League tie is the stuff Newcastle fans have dreamed of. Their upturn since the injection of Saudi Arabian cash in 2021 has brought many magical nights to Tyneside – and there could be more to come this season.

Newcastle have returned to the Champions League and the group stage format will give them a guaranteed two more fixtures than in their last foray, back in 2023/24. Barcelona is a plum first tie – and could come at an opportune moment, given Lamine Yamal is out injured.

Yet things could also have been better for the Magpies, who have been left to reflect on a difficult summer transfer window. The Alexander Isak saga dominated proceedings in the north east before he left on deadline day for £125million.

That money was reinvested to land Nick Woltemade for £69m and Yoane Wissa for £55m, while Anthony Elanga also arrived for £55m to strengthen the front line. However, Wissa and £40m midfielder Jacob Ramsey are both unavailable to face Barca due to injury.

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Injuries can’t be helped, but the way Newcastle conducted themselves in the market arguably could have been. The problems started back in May when sporting director Paul Mitchell announced his surprise departure – a decision that immediately impacted Howe’s summer.

“My phone exploded,” he said. “I was enjoying my second day of my holiday and that quickly went sour. It was a complete surprise to me. And a big disappointment because we had stability, we were planning the summer ahead and then that’s a big upheaval internally that we’ve been through before with Dan Ashworth leaving. It’s been a busier summer in that respect than I wanted. Naturally with Paul leaving, that left a hole in terms of that role.”

That hole proved to be a significant problem. Howe had to step into the void to take a more hands-on role in transfers. With Callum Wilson leaving on a free transfer, Newcastle knew they needed at least one striker, even before Isak left.

They struggled to attract one, missing out on Liam Delap, Joao Pedro, Hugo Ekitike and Benjamin Sesko, who all chose Premier League rivals, while an attempt to sign James Trafford was also unsuccessful, with the Burnley keeper instead re-joining Manchester City.

Woltemade had looked set to join Bayern Munich, but landed in Newcastle after the German giants turned their noses up at Stuttgart’s asking price. He scored on his Premier League debut to give his new side a 1-0 win over Wolves and will carry the weight of expectation on his shoulders on Thursday.

Howe and his players will be under no illusions about how hard it will be. The Magpies come in a lowly 84th in the UEFA coefficient and were therefore placed in Pot 4 of the Champions League draw, guaranteeing some tough fixtures. Unsurprisingly, Opta make their fixtures the hardest of any of the Premier League sides in the competition.

Newcastle have fond memories of their last taste of Champions League football in the 2023/24 season, with the 4-1 win over Paris Saint-Germain going down in the club’s folklore. However, it was tougher going against Milan and Dortmund, which means they have won just one of their last eight Champions League games, drawing three and losing four.

It is the first meeting between Newcastle and Barcelona since 2003, when goals from Patrick Kluivert and Thiago Motta gave the Catalan giants victory at St James’ Park. Hansi Flick’s side have started their La Liga campaign with three wins and a draw and have a good record against English sides, having won 12 of their last 16 Champions League games against them.

However, Toon fans can perhaps take some confidence from the Opta supercomputer, which gives them a 32.6 per cent chance of triumphing. Barcelona won 42.5 per cent of its 10,000 match simulations, making them favourites, but not by a huge margin.

Newcastle have more than a fair chance on Thursday night. Any thoughts of what might have been had a sporting director been in place have to take a back seat.

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