Eddie Howe makes clear Newcastle Champions League point ahead of Chelsea clash

Newcastle boss Eddie Howe has dismissed the idea that the club's return to Champions League football came too soon ahead of their Premier League clash with Chelsea on Monday night.

After Amanda Staveley's consortium took over in October 2021, Newcastle had a five-year plan which included playing in Europe's top football competition. However, they achieved this goal much sooner than expected thanks to an incredible run last season that saw them finish in the Premier League's top four.

Howe admits that the team exceeded expectations last campaign, while this season has been more challenging due to injuries within the squad. But when asked if they had aimed too high too soon, Howe said: «I don't think I can look at it that way.

»We were delighted to qualify for the Champions League. There was no part of me that was thinking, 'We're not ready for this' or, 'It's too early'.

«You have to grab the opportunity when it's there and we did. But of course with that comes the expectation and then you have to deal with that. We have to do better at dealing with that. This season has been a challenge.»

Newcastle were knocked out of the Champions League after losing 2-1 to AC Milan at home in their final group match, despite a memorable 4-1 win over Paris St Germain earlier in the tournament. That disappointment was compounded by a difficult run of results around the turn of the year which also saw them slip out of the Carabao Cup at the quarter-final stage and fall further off the pace in the league.

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This weekend, they are eighth, trailing the top six by four