Newcastle boss Eddie Howe keen to break new ground in Champions League

Eddie Howe is determined to make history by leading Newcastle into the Champions League knockout stage for the first time.

The Magpies, who sit sixth in the table at the halfway point, have given themselves a solid platform to progress by taking nine points from the first 12 on offer.

Sir Bobby Robson side made it out of the initial group in the 2002-03 campaign, but in those days, that secured entry only to a second group phase and they are yet to make the sudden death fixtures, something head coach Howe is desperate to remedy at the fourth attempt.

He said: “Yes, it’s a big prize for us and our eyes are very much on it, and I want the players to be feeling the same.

“We said at the start of the Champions League campaign that we didn’t want to have that feeling that we were just pleased to be in the competition.

“It’s serious. We want to progress. We’ve put ourselves in a stronger position now to do that after the first defeat, but there are still many challenges ahead.”

Those challenges only increase in difficulty after Wednesday night’s 2-0 home win over Athletic Bilbao, Newcastle’s third on the trot without conceding, the perfect response to their opening home defeat by Barcelona.

The programme always looked front-loaded for the Magpies with three of their first four games at St James’ Park, and they now head for Marseille later this month and Bayer Leverkusen in December before PSV Eindhoven arrive on Tyneside ahead of a trip to reigning champions Paris St Germain in January.

Howe said: “When you look at the fixtures we were always aware these home games were really important which put an added pressure on us.

“Of course we’ve had our troubles in the Premier League away from home, but we’ll look forward to these games. They’re an amazing thing. Marseille will be a great experience for everybody, a tough ground to go to, we’re looking forward to that.

“It’s certainly better to go there with nine points behind us.”

Goals from Dan Burn – a remarkable curling header – and Joelinton against the Spaniards took their side to within two points of the total required last season to make the top 24, but it was perhaps the performance of Italy international Sandro Tonali which once again stood out on the night.

It emerged earlier this month that Tonali had signed a contract extension during his ban for betting offences which could keep him on Tyneside until 2030, although the £55million signing was candid when asked about his long-term future in the wake of Alexander Isak’s summer departure.

He said: “This is a tough question because in football, you need to think year for year. I don’t want to say I want to stay here 10 years and in two years, three years, four years, five years, I will go.

“The last summer was tough for us, for Alex [Isak], but this is football. If you have an option for your life, for another team, you need to think about everything.

“But now I’m happy here. I don’t think anything about another team.”