For a club lacking in recent trophies, Newcastle United have many memories of European football - both good and bad. The following 10 are a celebration of the great floodlit nights and sporadic moments of brief hope. In 16 seasons of European participation, the Magpies have reached one final, one semi-final and two quarter-finals, with Alan Shearer top scorer with 30 and the mighty Shola Ameobi next with 15 goals. Trips to Hungary, Bulgaria, Sweden, Serbia and Russia haven't fazed the Toon Army, who always travel in their thousands to cheer their heroes. It's not always been good, though. That penalty shootout against Partizan Belgrade still haunts many fans, who believe it was the beginning of the end for Sir Bobby Robson's wonderful team. After a summer of inactivity, Robson's men did the hard work by winning 1-0 in Belgrade but lost at St James' Park. That night was a turning point. And what about the ugly pitch invasions that took place when 10,000 drunken Rangers fans turned up on Tyneside in 1969? More recent times have seen Newcastle spectacularly collapse in both Alkmaar and Lisbon, whilst a 4-4 thriller with French minnows Troyes saw them leave the Intertoto Cup on away goals. The closest Newcastle came to a UEFA Cup Final was in 2004, when a Didier Drogba-inspired Marseille broke Geordie hearts. Maybe they'll overcome that obstacle in future seasons, although it looks a long way off. In the meantime, let's get nostalgic about some of those magical European nights.
From Chester-le-Street, with Newcastle as my spiritual home. 24 years old, I'm at Sunderland University studying for a Sports Journalism MA. It's all about football and WWE. Wordplay jokes and puns are also encouraged.
