Newcastle welcome Jose Mourinho's Benfica to St. James' Park in this UEFA Champions League UCL clash, looking to finally find the kind of consistency that's been missing from their campaign so far.
Softfootball reported Eddie Howe's men bounced back from that 2-1 defeat to Barcelona on matchday one with an emphatic 4-0 win over Union Saint-Gilloise, but once again they're searching for a response after losing 2-1 to Brighton in the Premier League on Saturday. It's been a strange pattern for the Magpies, up one week, down the next, as they've yet to stitch together two straight victories this term. In fact, Newcastle haven't won consecutive UCL games since February 2003.
Doing so now might not come easy, considering their tendency to fluctuate at home. Their 2-0 victory over Nottingham Forest means they've alternated between wins and losses in all six of their home fixtures this season W3, L3.