Paris St Germain boss Luis Enrique has admitted Newcastle had been the pot 4 group no one needed to attract as they renew their acquaintance with the Champions League.
The French facet, together with AC Milan and Borussia Dortmund, have been pitched into Group F battle with the Magpies, who’re again within the massive time after a 20-year absence following final season’s fourth-placed Premier League end.
Enrique, a part of the Barcelona facet which misplaced 3-2 at St James’ Park in Newcastle’s very first fixture within the competitors in 1997, is aware of they might be a serious menace on their return to the European stage.
He stated: “They’re the group from the fourth pot within the draw that no-one actually needed, in fact. We all know that they play at a excessive stage.
“They’re excellent in possession, they’re excellent off the ball as properly. They play with a really excessive press – they’re nearly an entire soccer group.
“Tomorrow, they’re going to be taking part in in entrance of their extraordinarily passionate supporters as properly, and that’s going to assist them.
“All groups can go far within the Champions League. There’s no cause why Newcastle can’t go far both. No-one needed to play them, I suppose, additionally as a result of we noticed how good they had been final season.
“It’s a spectacular place to go and play and it’ll even be good for us to see what our group is fabricated from taking part in at St James’ Park.
“I’m envious of my gamers as a result of they’re going to get to expertise that first-hand out on the pitch tomorrow, and I simply hope that it’s an incredible sport.”
Enrique remembers his go to to Tyneside with Barca properly, though not fondly regardless of scoring on an evening when Tino Asprilla’s sensible hat-trick noticed Kenny Dalglish’s males safe one of many membership’s most well-known victories.
He stated: “Clearly it was a tricky sport, a very powerful sport. Twenty-six years in the past appears a lifetime in the past, I suppose – I used to be definitely so much youthful than I’m now.
“It’s true that I scored – I feel it completed 3-2? That they had nice gamers, an incredible ambiance generated by the gang. It wasn’t straightforward then and I don’t suppose it is going to be straightforward tomorrow both.”
Defender Lucas Hernandez arrived within the north east of England with a bit of additional inside data after chatting with his youthful brother Theo, who performed for AC Milan of their 0-0 draw with the Magpies a fortnight in the past.
Requested what he had been instructed, Hernandez stated: “He instructed me they had been very strong in defence. I do know Milan created fairly a number of probabilities, however they didn’t take them on the night time and naturally within the Champions League, if you happen to don’t take your probabilities, clearly you’re not going to win the sport.
“He instructed me greater than anything, they’re strong, compact, they’re good on the counter-attack and among the gamers are very fast going ahead.”
