- Newcastle broke UEFA rules
- Delayed start to Howe's pre-match press conference
- Flight delayed due to storm in Milan
WHAT HAPPENED? The Newcastle manager was scheduled to interact with the media in a pre-match conference at 7pm local time on Monday ahead of their Champions League opener against AC Milan, but instead, it started at 9 pm in San Siro. Just before Newcastle's original flight to Italy was due to take off at 5pm, a storm swept through Milan which forced their flight to be delayed.
WHAT THEY SAID: Upon arriving at San Siro, Howe told reporters: "It's just part and parcel of the job that we do. It's not out of the normal that that can happen. This was a weather problem, but we've been in similar situations. It's something we're used to, although it's a slightly later arrival time than we would have liked for the players. It's no big deal, though."
THE BIGGER PICTURE: As per UEFA rules, a pre-match press conference has to be conducted tjhe day before each match, between 12 pm and 8 pm. Howe's press conference started at 9pm, one hour past the stipulated time period, and two hours after the time that was originally allocated to the Magpies, meaning Newcastle could now face a UEFA probe.
IN TWO PHOTOS:
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Getty ImagesWHAT NEXT? Newcastle United are back in the Champions League after a 20 year absence and will face AC Milan in their opening game on Tuesday. They also have Paris Saint-Germain and Borussia Dortmund in their group.
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