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Newcastle defender Kieran Trippier is relishing the task of ruining Kylian Mbappe\u2019s Champions League trip to Tyneside even if it might upset his son.<\/p>\n
Magpies full-back Trippier is likely to be in direct competition with the Paris St Germain superstar when the clubs go head-to-head in Group F at St James\u2019 Park on Wednesday evening.<\/p>\n
However, he has revealed his son Jacob is a huge fan of Mbappe \u2013 who was seen calling for his gloves as he and his team-mates trained at an autumnal St James\u2019 on Tuesday evening \u2013 and that has been a bone of contention in the lead up to an eagerly-anticipated game.<\/p>\n
Trippier said with a smile: \u201cI was having a bit of banter with him last night and he said he wanted to walk out with Mbappe instead of me. I wasn\u2019t really happy with that.<\/p>\n
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\u201cHe\u2019s obsessed with him, always watching his clips on YouTube. I said to him, \u2018If you get to walk out with Mbappe, you don\u2019t look at me in the tunnel\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n
Trippier saw how dangerous Mbappe can be at close hand at last year\u2019s World Cup finals, where he watched from the bench as France dumped England out at the quarter-final stage, and has also come up against the supremely-talented 24-year-old on the pitch on more than one occasion in the past.<\/p>\n
He said: \u201cI played against him \u2013 I think it might have been his debut game for Monaco \u2013 when I was at Tottenham, and I played against him for England on my debut \u2013 it\u2019s quite a few years ago.<\/p>\n
We need to play our way because on our day, we can hurt anyone<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is football. These are the games you want as a player, playing in the Champions League, playing against the best players, the best teams. Paris have got unbelievable players in the team.<\/p>\n
\u201cOf course we need to recognise that Mbappe is one of the best players in the world, but they\u2019ve got quality all over the pitch and we can\u2019t be too fixed on them.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe need to play our way because on our day, we can hurt anyone.\u201d<\/p>\n
For head coach Eddie Howe, the task is to put together a side which can extend an unbeaten five-game run in all competitions and build upon the start they achieved with a 0-0 draw at AC Milan in their opening fixture.<\/p>\n
He will have to do so, however, without key defender Sven Botman and in all likelihood, with midfielder Joelinton and striker Callum Wilson also missing through injury.<\/p>\n
The fixture, which rekindles memories of a famous 3-2 victory over Barcelona in the same competition in 1997, is a measure of the progress Newcastle have made in the two years since Amanda Staveley\u2019s consortium launched its successful takeover and Howe, who arrived a few weeks later, admits the speed of progress has taken everyone by surprise.<\/p>\n
He said: \u201cThings move really quickly in football. I haven\u2019t been here the whole two years, but my part of it has absolutely flown by.<\/p>\n
\u201cInitially, nothing like this was in our thoughts, the speed at which it\u2019s happened. The only thing in our thoughts was staying in the Premier League initially.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut the swing of momentum has shifted so powerfully and quickly in a positive direction for us. My only thought is to keep that momentum for as long as we can.\u201d<\/p>\n
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A positive result against PSG would provide further evidence of the strides which have been taken, and Trippier insists victory, rather than football tourism, is his only focus.<\/p>\n
Asked if he would be chasing Mbappe\u2019s shirt after the final whistle, he said: \u201cThat has not crossed my mind. My thought process is to win.\u201d<\/p>\n