Sold-out stadiums and tickets like gold dust. A combination of youthful exuberance and shrewd heads that propel the team up the table. A coach who made the fans fall in love with his team again. Tyneside has seen this before.
Eddie Howe and his squad threaten to deliver the next great era for Newcastle United. Wins over Wolves and Nottingham Forest have left them in a strong position to attack in the Champions League football race. Fans dare to dream again.
It’s been 20 years since someone in a black and white jersey kicked a ball in anger in Europe’s top competition, a memorable campaign with more twists and turns than an Allan Saint-Maximin dribble in front of the eastern stands. For those of a certain age, the parallels are hard to ignore. There is excitement for what is to come. In what could be again.
In 2003, it was Sir Bobby Robson’s side that captured the hearts and minds of the Toon faithful. Victory over Zeljeznicar in the qualifying stages opened the doors to the continent’s main table as Newcastle threatened to cement their place among England’s elite. Lomana LuaLua was among the scorers as a 4-0 formal at St James’ Park sealed a 5-0 aggregate victory and a place in the group stage.
“I have very good memories of that place,” says the striker, known for his acrobatic celebrations. sports mail. Sir Bobby Robson focused on the youth, he wanted to do something similar to Manchester United. He wanted to build a young team, mixed with older players. So that we could also learn from them, get to know the game of others.
Newcastle United are in a strong position to compete for a top four spot with Eddie Howe
It’s been 20 years since Newcastle last experienced Champions League football.
Lomana LuaLua (left) was part of Sir Bobby Robson’s team that entered the competition
‘They bought me as a future player. there were people like [Jermaine] Jenas, Kieron Dyer, Titus Bramble, [Shola] ameobi, [Craig] Bellamy.
‘We had great experienced players, like Alan [Shearer]. He was great with the young players. Gary Speed also helped us a lot.
‘All the ambition and drive came from Sir Bobby. He really wanted to achieve something and he passed it on to us. We really believed in ourselves. We wanted to give something back to the fans. They can always see what you’re giving, and we were really excited about it. We knew we had a chance for the Champions League and we took it.
As for the fans, the feeling of excitement was mutual. Marc Corby, a regular contributor to True Faith Fanzine, is a season ticket holder and started attending St James’ Park in 1988.
“It seemed like we had genuine ambition at the time under the leadership of Sir Bobby Robson,” he says. sports mail.
“For me, even though we beat Barcelona 3-2 in that memorable game in 1997, I always felt the Champions League campaign was a bit tarnished. It was clear that it was the end of a glorious chapter.
‘We had a very fast and dynamic team. Bellamy, Kieron Dyer, Jermaine Jenas. You had Nobby Solano, Gary Speed, the engine in the middle, it was a joy to see players like that.
“There was a genuine belief that Bobby Robson was leading us to bigger and better things.”
LuaLua celebrates his goal in the tie against Zeljeznicar
Of course, there was an inauspicious start. Three straight defeats saw them bottom of Group E – ‘As good as it gets’.
But then came the sprinkling of Sir Bobby’s stardust. A 1-0 win over Serie A champions Juventus and a second home win, 2-1, against Dynamo Kyiv.
Both were capped off by an unforgettable night in Rotterdam and a thrilling 3-2 win over Feyenoord to reach the second group stage, and a bit of history. They had become the first team to leave the group after having lost the first three games.
“The first three games, I think it was due to lack of experience,” says LuaLua. After that, we had nothing to lose.
‘Sir Bobby would tell us to go out there and give the fans everything we’ve got. They will see it and they will be behind you.
‘I don’t think people notice. St James’ Park, even when you play in the cup against a smaller team, the fans are always there. It was always full. And he showed you what it meant to them.
‘The fans were one of the factors that pushed us. Noise. We just got stronger, we believed in ourselves more. People started looking at us differently. It was incredible.’
And that night at De Kuip? Give me chills. Everything was amazing. Sometimes you feel before a match “this is our day”.’
Craig Bellamy celebrates his last goal which sealed his historic win over Feyenoord
That night in the Netherlands paved the way for an extended European odyssey: a second group stage where Barcelona, Inter and last season’s beaten finalists Bayer Leverkusen all lay in wait.
LuaLua scored his first goal in the competition against the Bundesliga team in Germany. “Alan and Bellamy weren’t there, so Sir Bobby gave Shola Ameobi and me a chance to show what we can do,” he recalls.
‘Shola was one of my very good friends, he’s like a brother to me. We never thought we would have the opportunity to start in the Champions League. But he showed how Bobby believed in his youth. He wasn’t afraid to throw us away.
‘You don’t realize you’ve scored in the Champions League until the next day, until you get a call from your friends: “My God, you’ve scored in the Champions League!” Then it starts to sink.
There was also the incredible sight of 12,000 Geordies in Milan. Marc was among the many who made the pilgrimage. Fresh out of college, he had invested a month’s salary in the trip.
Around 12,000 Newcastle fans packed the visiting end at the San Siro as they took on Inter.
Alan Shearer scores one of his two goals against the Serie A side in a 2–2 draw in March 2003
“At the end of the day, my life was Newcastle United,” he says. And this was the trip of a lifetime for him.
From stories of Mark Hughes shopping for Armani suits in a crowd of toon fans, to Ant and Dec sending other fans to the wrong plaza, Milan 03′ is a treasure trove of weird and brilliant stories for Marc and thousands of others. The match was also quite memorable.
“I remember walking in and it was just a sea of black and white,” he says. ‘Everyone remembers Alan Shearer scoring the two goals which were absolutely brilliant. One of the best experiences of being part of a celebration – for me it’s right up there with Robert Lee’s goal at Wembley.
‘The atmosphere was magnificent. I think most people just couldn’t believe that Newcastle would face a team like Inter Milan at the San Siro.”
The memories are just as strong for those in the field. “Even before, you read the papers, you find out how many fans are traveling,” says LuaLua.
Sir Bobby Robson lifted the club out of relegation concerns into European football during his tenure.
“We weren’t playing against a regular team. It was Inter Milan. The team was at its best, the stadium was incredible. As a footballer, you always want to experience history. As a player you want to test yourself against the best, and Inter were one of the best.
“I remember I had a little problem with [Christian] Vieri. But it was amazing to play our small role in the history of the club. Hopefully we can come back.
A week after the tour ended, on 19 March, when a 2–0 loss to Barcelona sent Newcastle to third place in the group and an early exit. They have not been inducted since, with a sadly disappointing qualifying round exit to Partizan Belgrade marking the beginning of the end of Sir Bobby’s reign the following August.
They have never been better prepared to return than now. With less than a third of the season remaining, they are just two points out of the top four, with Spurs two games behind them.
LuaLua was involved in a small fight with Christian Vieri in the closing stages at the San Siro
“It would be fantastic, sooner than anyone expected,” says Marc. “It would be one of the greatest achievements for a Newcastle manager in my opinion.”
Howe certainly has his fans. “I played with Eddie Howe a bit at Portsmouth and followed him at Bournemouth,” says LuaLua.
‘When we first got him, he was happy because he knew the kind of football he likes to play. I thought the Newcastle fans would appreciate it. Eddie was a great choice and he’s doing very well. The fans love it and they are getting stronger and stronger.
“There’s a light at the end of the tunnel and I think it’s going to bring back the glory days.”
If he can bring Champions League football back, they’ll somersault all the way across the Tyne Bridge.