Newcastle win would place it above Manchester United in race for Champions League

NEWCASTLE: Newcastle United can continue their rise from underdogs to equals with victory over Manchester United — that’s the view of head coach Eddie Howe.

Howe is preparing to lock horns again with Dutchman Erik ten Hag, a constant critic of his Magpies’ side, the first time the two have met since it was the Red Devils who emerged victorious from the Carabao Cup final encounter in February.

A win at St. James’ Park this weekend would see Newcastle climb above their more decorated rivals in the race for the Champions League, it would also better their points tally for the whole of last season — and that despite still having 11 more games to play. That statistic in particular represents just how far Newcastle have come, in such a short space of time.

“I think we have tried this season to approach every game as equals with whoever we are playing,” said Howe ahead of the potentially pivotal weekend clash.

“Certainly in our preparations, we’ve tried not to filter anything negative through to the players. What I mean by that, we have tried to be very positive in our approach in every aspect of our play, whether that is on or off the ball. A fearless approach, an approach which hopefully makes the players believe we can win that game, home or away, because ultimately that is where we want to be to be the team we want to be in the future.

“Last season was slightly different. We had to play a certain way to get results to elevate our way up the league so. If you look at a game from last season to this, I hope you see a big difference in terms of our style and how we want to play.

“We are certainly evolving, hopefully into a better team.”

Meanwhile, Newcastle have announced the arrival of former manager of rivals