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Newcastle United Breaks UEFA Rules On Pre-Match Preparations After Storm Delays Departure

Newcastle United breaks UEFA rules as team arrives 2hours late for the pre-match conference due to a storm delay.

Newcastle United has found itself in a pickle, as it has unintentionally flouted UEFA’s rules regarding preparations for the Champions League.

The Magpies left Tyneside for their flight to northern Italy two hours and 20 minutes late. Reportedly, a storm, which wreaked havoc in Italy, was the root cause of the problem. As a result, the team did not get to hold its pre-match press conference at the stipulated time, which is mandatory according to UEFA’s regulations.

Per the rules, teams must hold their pre-game press conferences between 12pm and 8pm local time on the day before the game. 

However, due to the delay, Newcastle’s press conference began two hours later than the scheduled time.

Newcastle United manager, Eddie Howe has insisted the weather which delayed Newcastle’s arrival in Italy will not derail their Champions League adventure.

He also admitted that the team was stuck on the runway for almost two hours before take-off.

Despite the delay, Howe has expressed confidence that the team’s preparations for the match will not be affected.

Newcastle has been granted special permission to train in Tyneside, which they did on Monday morning, instead of at the San Siro later in the day.

However, the delay has caused some logistical issues, and the team’s arrival time is later than expected.

Speaking at the press conference, Howe reassured fans that the delay was not a significant problem and that the team was accustomed to such situations.

He stated that it was all part and parcel of the job.

For Howe, it will be the first Champions League game he has attended, and one he is relishing against a side which suffered a 5-1 derby drubbing at the hands of neighbours Inter on Saturday.

However, £53million summer signing Tonali, who arrived earlier in the summer from the San Siro also reminisced on his return to Italy against his former club.

Speaking, the Italian international said, “It will be the most thrilling feeling to come out into the stadium packed with people again.”

‘They let me live my dream here at AC Milan, but now I come back as a rival. I will have a lot of feelings tomorrow.”

“Everything happened so fast with the transfer, I was overwhelmed at first, but I have come across a wonderful team, wonderful staff and play for people who love football. The people of Newcastle will help anyone.”

Tuesday night’s game, which will be played 26 years and two days after the Magpies famously beat Barcelona 3-2 in the same tournament, comes more than two decades after their last appearance in Europe’s premier club competition.

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