Newcastle United’s ‘wall of noise’ backed to drive Magpies one step closer to Champions League’s last 16

Newcastle United manager Eddie Howe during the press conference on Tuesday. (Action Images/Reuters)
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Updated 25 October 2023
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Newcastle United’s ‘wall of noise’ backed to drive Magpies one step closer to Champions League’s last 16

NEWCASTLE: Eddie Howe has challenged Newcastle United supporters to replicate their Champions League wall of noise yet again as the Magpies look to clinch successive wins in the competition.

A white-hot atmosphere greeted Paris Saint-Germain at St. James’ Park earlier this month and the French champions were blown away 4-1 to put Howe’s men top of Group F after two games.

And as the third game approaches, three more points for Newcastle against Borussia Dortmund on Wednesday evening will maintain the Geordies’ European momentum.

Head coach Howe said: “It’s a tough game ahead. The beauty of the PSG game was the whole environment created by the supporters, but we need to forget that result. Take the confidence from it, but try to create that atmosphere all over again, and for us try to recreate those intensity levels and quality of our play to try to win the game.

“It’s another real top test. This group was always going to be that way and it’s great to be involved in. We knew this would be a tough examination for us; this is a key period in it now.

“We’ve made a good start but we can’t get ahead of ourselves. This is a pivotal game in the group.”

A lot of the talk in the run-up to the game has surrounded the availability of Italian international Sandro Tonali.

While the former AC Milan man has been in and out of the club’s Premier League starting XIs, he has started both Champions League encounters so far. And while the club await a decision on any potential ban for alleged illegal betting activity involving Tonali, Howe says the player is in his thoughts against the Bundesliga outfit.

Howe said: “As far as I’m aware, I’m expecting him to be available. I will plan like that until told differently. I can’t second guess what will happen. He has trained and is available.

“If that’s the case (UEFA does not want him involved), you know more than I do. I know very little. I’ve been preparing for the game. So I will wait to hear if anything concrete comes through.

"I haven’t (spoken to him about Saturday). It was emotional for him; that was clear to see. That will help him long-term. He will always be able to reflect back into that love he got from the supporters when he really needed it. Hopefully that will help his long-term relationship with the supporters.”

Meanwhile, on the injury front, Howe could welcome back Joe Willock for the first time this season.

The former Arsenal man has returned to full training after five months out of action, and is in contention for a place on the Magpies’ bench.

“Joe Willock is getting closer with every day that passes," said Howe, who had less positive news on his only other injury worry.

He added: “Sven Botman is still out. Apart from that we’re pretty similar to Saturday (4-0 win over Crystal Palace).

“I think Alexander Isak is back to full fitness. He’s trained really well in the build up to this game so I’m delighted at where his career is at and where his performances have been for us. I’m sure Alex will want to do well because it’s our next game.”

Dortmund, who trained on the St. James’ Park pitch on Tuesday night, head to Tyneside knowing a defeat would seriously put their progression in doubt. So far they are yet to score a goal and have picked up just one point in their opening two matches in the Champions League, despite being unbeaten and one win off the top of the Bundesliga table.

Head coach Edin Terzic is expecting a tough test against the Magpies, and he admits to being an admirer of Howe’s side.

Asked about Newcastle, Terzic said: “It’s not just the last couple of weeks; what they did last season was part of that. If you look at their whole history and the investment and money that has come in, they’ve been smart in the transfer market and built a team over 18 months.

“Qualifying for the Champions League through the Premier League is tough. When you look at this group we’re in you can see the strength and they’re top of the group at the moment, but only two games have gone so it’s really tight.

“Tomorrow we need to produce a good performance so we can earn victory. We can expect a warm welcome tomorrow night. It’s about us producing our game and energy on the pitch and making the most of this occasion.”


Germany recall Goretzka and Adeyemi for Italy Nations League tie

Updated 15 March 2025
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Germany recall Goretzka and Adeyemi for Italy Nations League tie

  • Nagelsmann, who coached him at Bayern, said: “Leon is in a very good phase from a sporting perspective“
  • Adeyemi has not pulled on a Germany senior shirt since 2022 and this is the first time Nagelsmann has selected him

BERLIN: Germany coach Julian Nagelsmann on Thursday recalled the in-form Leon Goretzka and Karim Adeyemi to his squad for the two-legged Nations League quarter-final tie with Italy.
Injuries to key players including Florian Wirtz, Kai Havertz, Niclas Fuellkrug and Marc-Andre Ter Stegen necessitated several changes as Germany look to reach the final four of the Nations League for the first time.
Bayern Munich midfielder Goretzka last played for Germany in 2023 but has regained the form of a few years ago.
Nagelsmann, who coached him at Bayern, said: “Leon is in a very good phase from a sporting perspective.”
Adeyemi has not pulled on a Germany senior shirt since 2022 and this is the first time Nagelsmann has selected him.
Appointed Germany manager in September 2023, Nagelsmann has repeatedly selected on form rather than reputation, having regularly left big names out of the squad.
On Thursday, Nagelsmann said he selected “players who play regularly for the club” and added he wanted players to be “on fire (and) show their spirit even if they don’t play from the start.”
Midfielder Nadiem Amiri has been chosen for the first time in five years as he benefits from Mainz’s rise to third spot in the table.
Inter Milan center-back Yann Aurel Bisseck, 24, is the only debutant.
“We’ve got great respect for him,” Nagelsmann said of Bisseck, adding “he’s got a lot of talent and brings plenty to the table.”
Manchester City back-up Stefan Ortega joins Hoffenheim’s Oliver Baumann and Stuttgart’s Alexander Nuebel, on loan from Bayern, as the goalkeepers.
Nagelsmann did not indicate which of the three would play but said he would opt for the same player for both games.
The coach complained about the scheduling of the Bundesliga, with seven members of the national squad involved when defending champions Bayer Leverkusen and last season’s runners-up Stuttgart play on Sunday.
Nagelsmann said he would now have “the shortest training period” he has ever had as Germany coach.
They face Italy in Milan on March 20 before hosting the Italians in the return leg in Dortmund on March 23.
Italy eliminated Germany with two goals in extra time at the same venue in the semifinals of the 2006 World Cup.
Germany had never beaten Italy at a major tournament until winning on penalties in the quarter-finals of Euro 2016.

Squad
Goalkeepers: Oliver Baumann (Hoffenheim), Alexander Nuebel (Stuttgart), Stefan Ortega (Manchester City/ENG)
Defenders: Yann Aurel Bisseck (Inter Milan/ITA), Joshua Kimmich (Bayern Munich), Robin Koch (Eintracht Frankfurt), Maximilian Mittelstaedt (Stuttgart), David Raum (RB Leipzig), Antonio Ruediger (Real Madrid/ESP), Nico Schlotterbeck (Borussia Dortmund), Jonathan Tah (Bayer Leverkusen)
Midfielders: Karim Adeyemi (Borussia Dortmund), Nadiem Amiri (Mainz), Robert Andrich (Bayer Leverkusen), Leon Goretzka (Bayern Munich), Pascal Gross (Borussia Dortmund), Jamie Leweling (Stuttgart), Jamal Musiala (Bayern Munich), Leroy Sane (Bayern Munich), Angelo Stiller (Stuttgart)
Forwards: Jonathan Burkardt (Mainz), Tim Kleindienst (Borussia Moenchengladbach), Deniz Undav (Stuttgart)


Tuchel calls up Marcus Rashford and ‘serial winner’ Jordan Henderson to his first England squad

Updated 14 March 2025
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Tuchel calls up Marcus Rashford and ‘serial winner’ Jordan Henderson to his first England squad

  • Henderson and Rashford missed out on last summer’s European Championship under then-coach Gareth Southgate
  • The German coach seemed equally impressed by Rashford’s recent performances with Aston Villa

LONDON: Thomas Tuchel praised Jordan Henderson as “a serial winner” in welcoming him and a resurgent Marcus Rashford back to the England team on Friday.
Tuchel included the pair in his first squad as England coach ahead of World Cup qualifiers against Albania and Latvia at Wembley Stadium.
Both Henderson and Rashford missed out on last summer’s European Championship under then-coach Gareth Southgate and faced uncertain international futures.
But now they’re contenders for the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Mexico and Canada.
“Jordan is, first of all, a serial winner,” Tuchel said of the Ajax midfielder. “What he brings to every team is leadership, character, personality, energy, make sure that everyone lives by the standards.”
The 34-year-old Henderson helped Liverpool win both the Champions League (2019) and Premier League (2020) before leaving in 2023 for Al-Ettifaq in Saudi Arabia. He lasted just six months there and transferred to Ajax, in part to face European competition in a bid to keep his place in the England team.
“Jordan brings everything — he embodies everything of what we want (for) this team to be,” Tuchel said at a news conference at Wembley.
The German coach seemed equally impressed by Rashford’s recent performances with Aston Villa. The 27-year-old forward couldn’t get into Ruben Amorim’s team at Manchester United, but his loan to Villa has been a success.
“I felt that Marcus had a huge impact in Aston Villa,” Tuchel said.
“The impact was impressive — the physical impact was impressive,” he added, “and most importantly the impact against the ball, his work rate, his defensive impact, his hard work in counter pressing, his tracking back on his position was impressive.”
Villa beat Club Brugge 3-0 on Wednesday to advance to the Champions League quarterfinals.
“I had the strong feeling that we should nominate him, we should bring him in to push him to stay on that level, to not fall back in old routines,” Tuchel said. “This camp is to bond with him, of course, to get to know him and push him to stay on exactly that level.”
Rashford joined Villa on loan the day before Europe’s winter transfer window closed, having not played for United since mid-December. Amorim had questioned Rashford’s commitment in training sessions.
Tuchel also included uncapped defenders Myles Lewis-Skelly and Dan Burn in his 26-man squad. Arsenal’s Lewis-Skelly is 18, while Newcastle’s Burn gets his first call-up at the age of 32.
England host Albania next Friday and Latvia three days later at Wembley Stadium.
“Everyone who is with us on this journey in the first camp is a contender for the World Cup,” Tuchel said.
While it’s just the first step, he added: “It is important to be in the first camp.”
‘Crash course’ starts Monday
Tuchel, who led Chelsea to the Champions League title in 2021, was hired to get England over the line. The men’s team’s lone World Cup title was in 1966.
Under Southgate, England reached the semifinals of the 2018 World Cup and back-to-back finals at the Euros. Spain beat England 2-1 in the Euro 2024 final.
“We only have six camps, we only have 60 days. We need to take care of every single day and make sure that we are on point,” Tuchel said.
Harry Kane will remain the team captain, Tuchel confirmed.
The playing style will reflect the Premier League, he added.
“We should be brave enough to play like an England squad and should not try to copy other nations, other styles too much,” he said. “It should reflect the values of the country and of the strongest league in the world, which is the Premier League.
“We will try to increase our rhythm in our game, increase the intensity in our game,” he added, “and we will try to do it of course in a crash course from Monday and unleash the potential for Friday.”

Goalkeepers: Dean Henderson (Crystal Palace), Jordan Pickford (Everton), Aaron Ramsdale (Southampton), James Trafford (Burnley)
Defenders: Dan Burn (Newcastle), Levi Colwill (Chelsea), Marc Guehi (Crystal Palace), Reece James (Chelsea), Ezri Konsa (Aston Villa), Myles Lewis-Skelly (Arsenal), Tino Livramento (Newcastle), Jarell Quansah (Liverpool), Kyle Walker (AC Milan)
Midfielders: Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid), Eberechi Eze (Crystal Palace), Curtis Jones (Liverpool), Jordan Henderson (Ajax), Cole Palmer (Chelsea), Morgan Rogers (Aston Villa), Declan Rice (Arsenal)
Forwards: Jarrod Bowen (West Ham), Anthony Gordon (Newcastle), Phil Foden (Manchester City), Harry Kane (Bayern Munich), Marcus Rashford (Aston Villa), Dominic Solanke (Tottenham)


Nico Williams fires Bilbao into Europa League quarters, Eintracht hammer Ajax

Updated 14 March 2025
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Nico Williams fires Bilbao into Europa League quarters, Eintracht hammer Ajax

  • A bullet Yuri Berchiche header from a corner gave the Basques a 2-0 lead in the 68th minute
  • Goals by Jean-Matteo Bahoya and Hugo Ekitike, as well as a Mario Goetze brace, handed Eintracht Frankfurt a 4-1 home win against Ajax

PARIS: Athletic Bilbao beat 10-man Roma 3-1 in their Europa League last-16 second leg on Thursday, while Eintracht Frankfurt put four past Ajax to book their place in the quarter-finals with a 6-2 aggregate win.
Euro 2024 winner Nico Williams grabbed a vital brace as Bilbao overturned a one-goal first-leg deficit to progress 4-3 on aggregate against the Italians.
The tie swung dramatically in the hosts’ favor in the 11th minute when veteran Roma center-half Mats Hummels received a straight red card for a last-man tackle on Maroan Sannadi.
Bilbao cranked up the pressure and finally found the breakthrough they were so desperately craving three minutes into first-half additional time.
Inaki Williams’ cross from the left traveled all the way across the box to his brother at the back post who shot first time, his goalbound effort taking a wicked deflection off Angelino to beat Mile Svilar.
A bullet Yuri Berchiche header from a corner gave the Basques a 2-0 lead in the 68th minute at the San Mames and Nico Williams grabbed a fine second eight minutes from time.
A 93rd-minute penalty by Leandro Paredes gave the Romans hope in the final seconds, but Bilbao held firm.
It was a better evening for fellow Italian capital club Lazio, who progressed 3-2 on aggregate against Viktoria Plzen.
Pavel Sulc levelled the tie for the Czechs shortly after half-time, but Alessio Romagnoli nodded in a corner with 19 minutes remaining to tie the score at 1-1 in the Stadio Olimpico and send Lazio through.
Elsewhere in the Europa League, goals by Jean-Matteo Bahoya and Hugo Ekitike, as well as a Mario Goetze brace, handed Eintracht Frankfurt a 4-1 home win against Ajax.
The German side progressed to the next stage with a 6-2 win over both legs.
Norwegians Bodo/Glimt lost 2-1 against reigning Europa Conference League champions Olympiakos in Athens, but went through 4-2 on aggregate.
Later, Premier League sides Manchester United and Tottenham have work to do if they are to reach the quarter-finals of the Europa League when they host Real Sociedad and AZ Alkmaar, respectively.
Chelsea welcome Copenhagen to Stamford Bridge in the Conference League, also at 2000 GMT.
Enzo Maresca’s side hold a 2-1 first-leg advantage over the Danes as they seek to reach the last eight.


Mbappe returns to France squad as PSG’s Doue earns first call-up

Updated 13 March 2025
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Mbappe returns to France squad as PSG’s Doue earns first call-up

  • Mbappe, 26, was left out of the last two France squads by coach Didier Deschamps for the Nations League group stage in October and November
  • Deschamps said at the time that his decision to do without Mbappe was “for the best” due to the noise surrounding the striker

PARIS: Captain Kylian Mbappe returned to the France squad named Thursday for this month’s UEFA Nations League quarter-final against Croatia, as Paris Saint-Germain teenager Desire Doue earned a first call-up.
Mbappe, 26, was left out of the last two France squads by coach Didier Deschamps for the Nations League group stage in October and November.
The Real Madrid superstar was initially dropped because of fitness concerns, before later being left out amidst headlines about his private life.
Deschamps said at the time that his decision to do without Mbappe was “for the best” due to the noise surrounding the striker.
Mbappe has been in fine form for Real in the months since and has scored 28 goals in all competitions this season for the club he joined last year.
“I have chatted with him and I confirm what I already said a few weeks ago, that he will be the captain,” Deschamps said in response to questions about Mbappe’s ongoing role as skipper.
The versatile Doue, meanwhile, has been rewarded for his impressive club form.
The 19-year-old has scored or set up a total of 17 goals in 23 appearances since becoming a regular in the PSG side in mid-December.
Capable of playing as a winger as well as in midfield, Doue was outstanding after coming off the bench for PSG in Tuesday’s Champions League last 16, second leg against Liverpool, and scored the winning kick in the penalty shoot-out.
Signed by PSG from Rennes for a reported 50 million euros ($54.1m) in August, Doue was part of Thierry Henry’s France Under-23 team that won the silver medal at the Paris Olympics last year.
“He is not always a starter for his club but whenever he plays or comes on he has made a lot of progress,” Deschamps said.
“He is a very young player but he is an interesting one for us. I could have waited but I have called him up now because I think it is the right time.”
France face Croatia away in Split in the first leg of the quarter-final next Thursday, March 20, in a tie that is a repeat of the 2018 World Cup final won by Les Bleus.
The sides will clash in the second leg at the Stade de France on Sunday, March 23.
The winners will advance to the final four, which will take place in either Italy or Germany in June.
N’Golo Kante is the most notable absentee from the squad, with Deschamps revealing that the Saudi Arabia-based midfielder has been nursing a minor muscle injury.

Squad Goalkeepers: Lucas Chevalier (Lille), Mike Maignan (AC Milan/ITA), Brice Samba (Rennes)
Defenders: Jonathan Clauss (Nice), Lucas Digne (Aston Villa/ENG), Theo Hernandez (AC Milan/ITA), Ibrahima Konate (Liverpool/ENG), Jules Kounde (Barcelona/ESP), Benjamin Pavard (Inter Milan/ITA), William Saliba (Arsenal/ENG), Dayot Upamecano (Bayern Munich/GER)
Midfielders: Eduardo Camavinga (Real Madrid/ESP), Matteo Guendouzi (Lazio/ITA), Manu Kone (Roma/ITA), Adrien Rabiot (Marseille), Aurelien Tchouameni (Real Madrid/ESP), Warren Zaire-Emery (Paris Saint-Germain)
Forwards: Bradley Barcola, Ousmane Dembele, Desire Doue (all Paris Saint-Germain), Randal Kolo Muani (Juventus/ITA, on loan from Paris Saint-Germain), Kylian Mbappe (Real Madrid/ESP), Michael Olize (Bayern Munich/GER), Marcus Thuram (Inter Milan/ITA)


Kimmich extends Bayern contract until 2029

Updated 13 March 2025
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Kimmich extends Bayern contract until 2029

  • Germany international Kimmich said he made his decision because Bayern is “the best environment to achieve my sporting goals”
  • “I feel at home here and I’m not finished yet“

BERLIN: Bayern Munich on Thursday announced Joshua Kimmich had signed a four-year extension to his contract that had been set to expire at the end of the season.
Germany international Kimmich said he made his decision because Bayern is “the best environment to achieve my sporting goals.
“There’s currently no better package of teammates, coaching staff and club environment for me to achieve maximum success. I feel at home here and I’m not finished yet.”
After Tuesday’s 2-0 win at Bayer Leverkusen sent Bayern through to the Champions League quarter-finals, Kimmich told reporters he was set to prolong his stay at the club.


After speculation he could leave Bayern in previous seasons, Kimmich has rediscovered his best form in midfield under Vincent Kompany, having played every minute in the Bundesliga until picking up a minor injury in February.
Kimmich, already the national team captain, is viewed as the successor to current Bayern skipper Manuel Neuer.
Sporting director Christoph Freund called the 30-year-old Kimmich “a driving force that will tirelessly drive Bayern forward in the future.”
Kimmich’s new contract is the latest in several extended deals in 2025 as Bayern seek to shore up their future, with Neuer, Jamal Musiala and Alphonso Davies all recently extending their contracts.
Kimmich signed for Bayern from Stuttgart in 2015 after a two-year spell at RB Leipzig and has made 429 appearances for Bayern, scoring 43 goals and providing 115 assists.
At Bayern, Kimmich has won eight Bundesliga titles and lifted the Champions League in 2020.
Kimmich has also played 97 times for Germany.
Eight points clear of defending champions Leverkusen, Bayern are on track to win back the Bundesliga title.
They will face Inter Milan in the Champions League quarter-finals, with this season’s final to be held in Munich in May.