Barcelona's first stop on the long road to European glory takes them to Newcastle, where they will come up against a formidable opponent and equally formidable atmosphere at St James' Park without the talismanic Lamine Yamal. The injured 18-year-old has been ruled out, having found himself at the centre of a feud between club and country, but loanee Marcus Rashford will be determined to make an impact in his absence.
Bruno Guimaraes has called for Newcastle to avoid the heartbreak of losing key players like Alexander Isak in the future, following the £125 million sale of the Swedish striker to Liverpool this summer. Speaking ahead of Newcastle’s Champions League clash with Barcelona, the Brazilian star and Magpies captain made it clear that the dressing room does not want to see any more prized assets depart St James' Park.
Newcastle legend Alan Shearer has delivered a fiery warning to Barcelona ahead of their Champions League opener, insisting the Spanish heavyweights won’t find life easy at St James’ Park. The Magpies icon, speaking ahead of Thursday night’s clash, believes his old club are more than capable of denting Barca’s campaign and snatching vital points on home soil.
Lamine Yamal will not be available for the Champions League opener against Newcastle on Thursday, much to the dismay of head coach Hansi Flick. A war of words broke out between the German and the Spanish FA after he criticised the Spanish national team for not looking after Yamal. However, on the bright side, Frenkie de Jong has been named in the matchday squad.
Newcastle United have officially confirmed to the Premier League that the capacity of St James' Park has been expanded, but only by a very small number of seats since the start of last season. The underwhelming news has caused more frustration for fans and led to questions about the club’s progress on plans to increase capacity to 65,000 either through renovation or a new stadium.
Barcelona’s wait to return to Camp Nou drags on, as it was confirmed their upcoming La Liga clash against Getafe will be played at the 6,000-capacity Johan Cruyff Stadium. While the club hope to secure the necessary license in time, focus is already shifting to the Champions League deadline, with UEFA demanding assurances before the crunch clash against Paris Saint-Germain on October 1.
Nick Woltemade has been discussing his living arrangement since completing a transfer to Newcastle, with the German striker being joined on Tyneside by one of his best friends. Neither has an issue with their shared accommodation as they remain single and ready to embrace an exciting new challenge with Premier League giants in the north of England.
Erling Haaland was back to his very best as the striker led Manchester City to a thumping derby win over Manchester United on Sunday. The Norwegian made yet more history, becoming the joint-top scorer in the fixture as well as the fastest player to reach 90 Premier League goals. And a beaming Pep Guardiola declared that Haaland was in the best form of his career.
That first international break of the season always comes at just the wrong time. With teams starting to get into the groove as they switch from pre-season to competitive action, and with the final new signings of the summer arriving on deadline day, that Premier League fans had to wait two weeks to see their teams in action was almost a travesty. Fortunately, that wait is now over.
Arne Slot has defended his decision to delay Alexander Isak’s Liverpool debut by pointing to Yoane Wissa’s recent injury at Newcastle. The Reds’ £125 million ($170m) signing was left out of the squad against Burnley, with the Dutchman warning that rushing him back after a summer stand-off and no pre-season could risk long-term damage to the Swedish striker.
Eddie Howe was delighted with Nick Woltemade's goalscoring debut after landing the striker to replace Alexander Isak. Handed the impossible task of stepping into the void left by £125 million ($170m) Isak, the 23-year-old German silenced any doubters with a thunderous debut goal in front of a raucous St James’ Park crowd.
Nick Woltemade's career on Tyneside got off to the best possible start, as the German striker scored the winner in Newcastle's 1-0 win over Wolves at St. James's Park. The 22-year-old spoke positively about the experience, and his new manager Eddie Howe, but also admitted "the Premier League is quite hard", revealing he was experiencing cramp during his debut.
Arne Slot is adamant he has no concerns over the attitude of new signing Alexander Isak following the forward's decision to go on strike in order to force through his move to Liverpool from Newcastle. Isak, 25, joined the Reds for a British transfer record fee of £125 million (€144.5m/$169.3m) on deadline day, ending the summer-long saga surrounding his future.
Newcastle United have sensationally pulled the plug on 45 tickets allocated to pupils from the High School of Dundee for their blockbuster Champions League showdown against Barcelona, sparking a storm of controversy. But just days after news of their planned adventure broke, the Magpies confirmed the seats were being stripped away, bowing to mounting fury from their own loyal supporters.
Former Newcastle United chief Amanda Staveley was reduced to tears after hearing a fan message that thanked her for reconnecting the club "with its soul". Staveley was instrumental in bringing in Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund as the principal owner of the Magpies in 2021. She later bought a 10 per cent stake in the club, along with her husband Mehrdad Ghodoussi.
Newcastle United's record summer signing Nick Woltemade has been labelled a "true gentleman" after a visit to the popular city restaurant Khai Khai. The German forward, who was linked with Bayern Munich for a large part of the summer transfer window, eventually swapped Stuttgart for the Magpies last month in a deal worth up to £69 million ($93m).