Union Saint-Gilloise manager says his side will have to give everything to compete in Champions League ahead of Newcastle United meeting
Newcastle United take on Belgian champions Union Saint-Gilloise in the Champions League on Wednesday - kick-off is 5:45 pm live on TNT Sports.
The Magpies gave a good account of themselves in their first Champions League outing against Barcelona, but ultimately fell to a defeat thanks to two goals from Marcus Rashford.
Meanwhile, tomorrow's opponents, Union Saint-Gilloise, announced themselves on Europe's biggest stage with a shock 3-1 win over PSV.
That will have been a big warning shot to the Magpies, who were likely hoping that USG would be the easy team in their run of fixtures.
Union Saint-Gilloise manager wants to see how his team stacks up against the best
Union Saint-Gilloise manager Sebastien Pocognoli isn't getting carried away, however, and has told reporters (via The Chronicle) that he knows how difficult it's going to be to progress in the competition.
"I expect a very physical match. We'll have to be at one hundred percent and give everything. We'll have to be there from the very first second. It's the only way to go into a match like this with any ambition.
"We're ambitious, but also realistic. I'm not going to put a percentage on how much of a chance we have. We simply have to do everything we can to maximise that percentage. We're not setting a specific goal for this campaign.
"We've started well and are taking it one match at a time. We'll see where that takes us. It's a real challenge. I'm curious to see where we stand in Europe."
Newcastle's lack of goals is their biggest concern heading into the game against USG
Newcastle could really do with a win on the road right now, having drawn every game away from St James' Park so far this season. In all honesty, a win at any ground would settle a few nerves.
It's a game that Newcastle will feel they have the strength to win, but USG are coming off the back of a 2-0 win against Westerlo in a game which included a cameo from Newcastle loanee Antonio Cordero.
With Newcastle's struggles to score goals at the moment, we're finding this one a bit difficult to predict.
