Union Saint-Gilloise man didn't need to ask his Premier League-star brother for advice about playing Newcastle United
Union Saint-Gilloise will host Newcastle United in the Champions League this evening on neutral-ish ground in a 5:45 pm kick-off live on TNT Sports.
The Belgian side's stadium isn't up to UEFA's standards for the Champions League, so they are having to play their games at the nearby Lotto Stadium instead, but given that it's still in Belgium and not too far away from their own ground, it's hardly a big advantage to Newcastle.
This game was probably eyed by most Newcastle fans as the 'easy' fixture when the draw was made, but having beaten PSV 3-1 in game week one, USG have shown that they are no pushovers.
They are undefeated in the league too, looking good to reclaim their title already with a six-point lead over second-place Club Brugge.
They have one star who claims to know an awful lot about Newcastle United already, and even if he didn't, he has someone he could call for advice. Kevin Mac Allister, the older brother of Liverpool's Alexis Mac Allister, is likely to lineup against Newcastle tonight, and he told Het Nieuwsblad he knows what to expect, and didn't need to bother Alexis to find out.
“I didn’t want to disturb him too much, because he’s obviously focused on his own game.
“It’s the best league in the world, so I follow the Premier League closely. I also regularly watch Newcastle’s matches because I love their style of play. Of course, my brother could give me advice, but I know well enough what we’ll be up against.
“Newcastle, the Union of the Premier League? There are definitely similarities. We both play in a low block at times, lurking for the counterattack, and both sometimes keep the ball in the team and find spaces behind the defence. So you can compare us in that respect. Although they might have a bit more quality.”
Newcastle loves playing a low block, but really comes undone when playing a side who do it too, so if Union Saint-Gilloise opt to deploy the low block tonight, we could be in for some trouble.
We're already having great difficulty creating and taking chances, so if we have to try and force our way through a low block, we could be in for a long night.
Also, how have I written an article about Kevin Mac Allister and not made a Home Alone joke? Does this count?
