Newcastle United’s game against Tottenham Hotspur will be played in front of a crowd of more than 80,000 football fanatics in Melbourne.
True, the stage is usually reserved for Test cricket and the Ashes with England taking part in some titantic clashes on the hallowed turf down the years. But tonight, the love for Premier League football will be there for all to see here in Melbourne.
The MCG actually has a capacity of 100,024 with 95,000 seats and 5,000 standing spots. Newcastle fans have travelled from the UK and there will be plenty ex-pats in the crowd too.
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Over 10,000 Spurs fans turned up just to see an open training session on the eve of the game. Newcastle opted against having an open session but held a fan workshop on the day of the game with the marquee United fan meet taking place on Thursday night.
The Herald Sun in Melbourne claims that there has been bigger crowds for soccer at the MCG recalling a 95,000 crowd for the clash between Liverpool and Melbourne Victory in 2013.
Eddie Howe tells Australian media about “sliding doors” moment
An interesting sub-plot to the clash between Ange Postecoglou and Eddie Howe is the sliding doors element of both manager’s journey.
Had Howe taken the Celtic job in 2021 as many anticipated, the Scottish Premiership champions would not have opted for Big Ange. But his success north of the border helped pave the way for him to get to Spurs in the Premier League.
Howe told the Australian media: “It’s always that kind of thing when you are a manager you are looking for that next opportunity.
“I have had it myself where maybe certain things have happened. You think you are going to miss out on a job and then you get an opportunity you don’t expect.”
Indeed, Howe then referenced his own career path and said: “It can change your life dramatically and it can change your career. That has certainly happened for me here at Newcastle.”
Newcastle fans travelling from around Australia to be part of “celebration”
There are fans here from the Outback, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth. All of them will meet up in the city centre at a massive pre-match party in Melbourne.
Despite the friendly game being branded a waste of time by many observers in the UK you won’t find anybody putting it down here.
It may be over 10,000 miles from St James’ Park but it will feel like being in the Strawberry at 2.45pm on a Saturday match day!
Toon fan Paul Fitzsimmons told me: “I’ve come in from the Northern Territory – this game is a dream come true. It’ll be a celebration and I wouldn’t miss it for the word. For all the negativity about the game, the fans here won’t buy into that, it’s an opportunity.”
View news Source: https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/newcastle-notes-oz-staggering-80000-29215641
