Eddie Howe: 'Newcastle United can only benefit from AC Milan draw'

Eddie Howe has suggested that he will only take the positives from Newcastle United's goalless draw with AC Milan in the Champions League.

Having been drawn in the toughest group in the competition alongside Paris Saint-Germain and Borussia Dortmund, Newcastle needed to hit the ground running at San Siro.

However, against a side that had lost to rivals Inter Milan by a 5-1 scoreline at the weekend, the Magpies were second-best for large periods of the game in Italy.

Prior to Sean Longstaff almost scoring a last-gasp winner, Milan had laid siege to Nick Pope's goal, seeing the England stopper make numerous saves and his defenders stand firm in the face of constant pressure.

While Newcastle had to ride their luck on occasions, they came away with a point that Howe insisted that his players deserved for their application and character.

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Speaking to reporters, as quoted by BBC Sport, Howe said: "You can't underestimate the difficulties of coming here - the emotion of the game, new experiences, we had to take a lot on board today.

"I thought the crowd were very good for Milan. It was a hostile atmosphere and the players had to adjust to that and that is why I don't think you can underestimate the performance and point.

"It will look better and better as time goes on. There were new experiences for a lot of us tonight and hopefully we can grow from this."

Having struggled before the international break, Newcastle have now kept back-to-back clean sheets, the shutout preceding the Milan game coming at home to Brentford three days earlier.

Next up in Europe is a home fixture against Paris Saint-Germain, who sit at the top of Group F having recorded a 2-0 victory over Dortmund at Parc des Princes.

Newcastle, who are 12th in the Premier League table, will hope to transfer their resilience into the top flight when they meet Sheffield United at Bramall Lane on Sunday.