Eddie Howe has urged his players to write their names into Newcastle United folklore by replicating the club’s famous 1997 Champions League victory over Barcelona when they face the Spanish giants in the last-16 first leg.

Newcastle host the LaLiga leaders on Tuesday in what could be a defining moment for Howe’s side.

Supporters still speak with reverence about the night in 1997 when Faustino Asprilla scored a hat-trick and Keith Gillespie delivered a brilliant display as the Magpies stunned Barcelona 3-2 in the Champions League group stage.

Howe, who was beginning his playing career at Bournemouth at the time, remembers watching the match on television as a teenager.

Now the Newcastle boss believes his current squad has the opportunity to create its own piece of history against Hansi Flick’s star-studded team.

“Yes, I watched the game. I was very focused on my playing career, but you couldn’t not watch that moment. It was one of those legendary games,” Howe told reporters on Monday.

“Of course we want people in future years to be talking about this team. Tino Asprilla gets a hat-trick from those Keith Gillespie deliveries on the right.

“I’d want our players to be talked about the same way in 20 or 30 years.”

Newcastle have reached the Champions League last 16 for only the second time in their history.

Howe understands the scale of that achievement after arriving at the club in 2021 when Newcastle were struggling.

Backed by the financial power of the club’s Saudi ownership, Howe has overseen a dramatic transformation, turning Newcastle from relegation candidates into one of Europe’s rising sides.

The Magpies ended a 56-year wait for silverware last season when they shocked Liverpool to win the League Cup.

But Howe believes beating Barcelona would be an even greater accomplishment and has challenged his players to seize what could be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

“There are only 16 teams left and we are one of them. It is very much an opportunity to grab a moment that we may never get again,” he said.

“You don’t know what life brings tomorrow, let alone future seasons.

“We don’t want to kick ourselves, we don’t want to waste the opportunity and think about what ifs.

“So this is a moment for us to grab. In my time here, just over four years, we have worked to get to this point.

“As long as we perform to our maximum, we have to accept the result.”

Howe described the clash with Barcelona as one of the biggest games in the club’s modern history and believes embracing their underdog status could help Newcastle spring a surprise.

“That’s very much the mentality we need — rising to the occasion and embracing the size of the game,” he said.

“The underdog role, to a degree, has helped us in my time here when we’ve felt the odds were stacked against us.

“We are going to need to use every psychological tool because there’s no denying we are playing a very good team, an outstandingly well-coached team.

“All our Champions League games have been a great rehearsal for this moment.”

Newcastle have already faced Barcelona this season, losing 2-1 at home in the group stage after a Marcus Rashford double.

“When you are playing the very best teams, you take a lot of that with you going forward,” Howe added.

“We can take a lot from the performance. Hopefully we can learn lessons from that tie.”