Idman.biz
Newcastle club's centre-back Dan Burn is in high spirits before the match against Qarabag in the first leg of the Champions League play-off stage, which will be held in Baku on February 18.
Idman.Biz reports that after the 3:1 victory over Aston Villa in the 1/16 finals of the English Cup, the football player, who has been wearing the "magpies" uniform for five years, wants to bring the positive mood from the last meeting to the trip to the capital of Azerbaijan.
"Our big goal for the season was to advance to the Champions League play-off stage. We got what we wanted and now we are continuing our journey. We don't have much information about Qarabag, but it is always interesting to play in new venues in Europe's main club tournament," said the 201 cm tall defender.
Burn also talked about the meeting organized by the team leaders, which gave a new impetus to the season. Just a week ago, the situation was quite tense: the club lost 2:3 to Brentford at St. James' Park and fell to the bottom half of the league table. This coincided with just a few days after being eliminated from the League Cup. But since then, Newcastle have won three points in the game with Tottenham (2:1) and advanced to the 1/8 finals by defeating Aston Villa in the fourth round of the English Cup. The team is now only two steps away from Wembley, where the semi-finals are held.
According to Burn, these victories would not have been possible without the "crisis" meeting held behind closed doors.
"We talked among ourselves - as football players and coaching staff. It seems that there is a moment in the season when a few harsh but sincere words are spoken. This creates a kind of renewal effect for everyone. You analyze what you did well before and understand what you want to return to. Everyone supports and supports each other. Maybe these weren't two ideal games, but they were two wins," the defender admitted.
Since the English Cup is on hiatus until March, Newcastle must turn their attention to the Champions League. There is a trip to Baku ahead - to the game with Qarabag, and the team will be supported by about 2,000 "magpies" fans. Burn believes that the victory over Aston Villa creates additional motivation before the trip. "It was a good game in every way. It gave us momentum. We won two away games. I know there was a lot of talk about our away games. But this is great - and now forward, to the game with Qarabag," Burn concluded.
