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Euphoria Sweeps Tyneside as Newcastle Aim Even Higher

(L-R) Manager Unai Emery of Aston Villa shakes hands with manager Eddie Howe of Newcastle United during a Premier League Summer Series match between Aston Villa and Newcastle United at Lincoln Financial Field on July 23, 2023 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Getty Images/AFP)
(L-R) Manager Unai Emery of Aston Villa shakes hands with manager Eddie Howe of Newcastle United during a Premier League Summer Series match between Aston Villa and Newcastle United at Lincoln Financial Field on July 23, 2023 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Getty Images/AFP)
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Euphoria Sweeps Tyneside as Newcastle Aim Even Higher

(L-R) Manager Unai Emery of Aston Villa shakes hands with manager Eddie Howe of Newcastle United during a Premier League Summer Series match between Aston Villa and Newcastle United at Lincoln Financial Field on July 23, 2023 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Getty Images/AFP)
(L-R) Manager Unai Emery of Aston Villa shakes hands with manager Eddie Howe of Newcastle United during a Premier League Summer Series match between Aston Villa and Newcastle United at Lincoln Financial Field on July 23, 2023 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Getty Images/AFP)

Newcastle United will start the season truly back amongst the big boys for the first time in a couple of decades with expectation levels sky high on Tyneside.

After year's of discontent and gloom, the fog that engulfed the serial under-achievers has lifted and a bright new dawn arrived last season when Eddie Howe's side finished fourth.

Fans of the club, majority owned by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF) since 2021, used to begin campaigns fretting about the possibility of relegation.

Now, after a stunning resurgence they have gate-crashed the top table of English football and will return to the Champions League group stage for the first time since 2003.

Impressively, Newcastle's rise is not all about spending the money that is clearly now at their disposal.

Astute signings, rather than Hollywood buys, have been the order of the day with Howe constructing a team imbued with a high work ethic and well-defined method.

Fans will lament the sale of winger Allan Saint-Maximin.

But it is a case of "in Howe we trust" and the recruitment of English winger Harvey Barnes and Italian midfielder Sandro Tonali have added depth to the squad.

Newcastle also signed teenaged winger Yankuba Minteh from Odense as they look to build a team that can cement their place amongst the elite, rather than be a flash in the pan.

There will be challenges this season. The Champions League will stretch the squad and the likes of Chelsea, Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur will be eager to re-assert themselves after being replaced by Newcastle in the top four.

And for all the good vibes sweeping the Magpies, the club's trophy cabinet is still gathering dust.

They got close to ending the 55-year wait for a top-level trophy last season, only to lose the League Cup final to Manchester United.

So, while competing towards the top of the Premier League and enjoying the Champions League nights will rekindle the heady days of Bobby Robson and Kevin Keegan, Newcastle can be expected to take the domestic cups seriously too.

The core of Howe's team proved ultra-reliable last season with keeper Nick Pope, central defender Sven Botman, right back Kieran Trippier and midfielder Bruno Guimaraes enjoying levels of consistency that are a manager's dream.

They will have to reach the same standards this season for Newcastle to continue to thrive.

Newcastle finished with 71 points but even as that campaign finished, Howe was focused on the challenges ahead -- knowing they must not stand still.

"There are no guarantees, we have to earn the right to be the team that people want us to be," Howe said.

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Djokovic Still Feels Trauma When He Travels to Australia Because of His Deportation in 2022

Novak Djokovic of Serbia poses with the Norman Brookes Challenge Cup in the gardens of Government House the morning after defeating Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece in the men's singles final at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Monday, Jan. 30, 2023. (AP)
Novak Djokovic of Serbia poses with the Norman Brookes Challenge Cup in the gardens of Government House the morning after defeating Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece in the men's singles final at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Monday, Jan. 30, 2023. (AP)
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Djokovic Still Feels Trauma When He Travels to Australia Because of His Deportation in 2022

Novak Djokovic of Serbia poses with the Norman Brookes Challenge Cup in the gardens of Government House the morning after defeating Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece in the men's singles final at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Monday, Jan. 30, 2023. (AP)
Novak Djokovic of Serbia poses with the Norman Brookes Challenge Cup in the gardens of Government House the morning after defeating Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece in the men's singles final at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Monday, Jan. 30, 2023. (AP)

Novak Djokovic said he still feels "a bit of trauma" when he travels to Australia, stemming from his deportation in 2022 because he was not vaccinated against COVID-19.

"The last couple of times that I landed in Australia, to go through passport control and immigration, I had a bit of trauma from three years ago," Djokovic said in an interview with Melbourne's Herald Sun newspaper published Monday, ahead of the Australian Open. "And some traces still stay there when I’m passing passport control, just checking out if someone from immigration zone is approaching."

Djokovic, who has won 10 of his 24 Grand Slam championships at Melbourne Park, continued: "The person checking my passport — are they going to take me, detain me again or let me go? I must admit I have that feeling."

Back in 2022, Djokovic sought, and initially obtained, an exemption that would allow him into the Australian Open — and the country — even though there were strict rules requiring shots to protect against the coronavirus. But after his flight landed, he was detained at the airport, his visa was canceled and he was sent to an immigration hotel.

A judge later reinstated the visa and ordered Djokovic’s release, ruling he wasn’t given enough time to speak to his lawyers. Australia’s immigration minister then took away the visa again, based on "public interest."

Djokovic’s appeal of that ruling was denied by a three-judge panel, and he was deported. He faced a possible three-year ban from the country as someone whose visa was revoked, but Australia had a change of government, its pandemic border rules changed and a new immigration minister granted Djokovic a visa in 2023 — when he went on to claim the trophy.

"I don’t hold any resentment, to be honest," Djokovic told the Herald Sun about the saga. "I don’t hold a grudge."

The Australian Open begins Sunday (Saturday EST), and Djokovic will be pursuing his 11th trophy in Melbourne to add to his men's record and an unprecedented 25th major singles title overall.

A year ago, Djokovic lost in the semifinals to eventual champion Jannik Sinner.

"I just hope to, before I retire, get at least one more title there," said the 37-year-old Djokovic, whose only triumph at a tournament in 2024 was his singles gold medal for Serbia at the Paris Olympics in August.

Djokovic opened 2025 at the Brisbane International last week, losing in the quarterfinals to Reilly Opelka.

At the Australian Open, Djokovic will be playing in his first event alongside new coach Andy Murray, his former on-court rival and a three-time major champion who retired as a player after the Summer Games. Murray and Djokovic have said they will partner up through the year's initial Grand Slam tournament.