Eddie Howe wants to see an immediate response from his Newcastle United team after their Champions League exit.

A second-half capitulation at Camp Nou saw Newcastle lose 7-2 to Barcelona on Wednesday, sealing an 8-3 aggregate defeat.

Anthony Elanga's first-half double gave Newcastle plenty of hope, but Barca stormed away from them after the break.

The big games come thick and fast for the Magpies, as they host Sunderland in the Tyne-Wear derby on Sunday.

Nick Woltemade's own goal condemned Newcastle to a 1-0 loss in the reverse fixture, and Howe is keen to see a positive reaction as his side hunt down a top-seven finish.

"I've got no problem picking myself up, it's more the players. I'm able to move quite quickly through things, the game and the review process, to then think of the future very quickly," he said.

"Now it's all about Sunderland, it's not about what's happened. It's about learning from it and evolving and changing if we need to.

"It's about the next game and making sure we're mentally ready, physically ready for what's going to be a huge game for us and for the whole city, so I think that's quite a good game for us to go straight into because there's no time for any other thought than that.

"It's huge. There's no point talking about it though, we've just got to play. We've got to play like our lives depend on it.

"It's such a big game for the city, for our supporters, for everyone connected with the club. We know that. We knew it before the first game and we know it even more now.

"We need to deal with this very quickly and then move on to Sunday."

7-2 - Tonight's 7-2 defeat for Newcastle means the last two Englishmen to manage against Barcelona at the Camp Nou have conceded seven goals, with Eddie Howe joining Gary Neville in 2016. Chastening. https://t.co/0EFJ80YTWT pic.twitter.com/ZQdcORik8X

— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) March 18, 2026

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Newcastle United - Anthony Gordon

Gordon has scored in back-to-back Premier League games, and could score in three consecutive appearances for the very first time, with his next match his 175th in the top flight.

Sunderland - Granit Xhaka

Xhaka has now made 251 Premier League appearances, and Sunderland's captain is closing in on 50 top-flight goal involvements.

Having assisted a team-leading five goals this term, Xhaka is on 47 goal involvements in total in the Premier League (18 goals, 29 assists).

MATCH PREDICTION: NEWCASTLE WIN

Howe could become the first Newcastle manager to lose both of his first two league games against Sunderland.

Meanwhile, Regis Le Bris could be only the second Sunderland boss to win both of his first two league Tyne-Wear derbies in charge, after Gus Poyet in 2013-14.

Only Aston Villa (19) have won more points from losing positions than Sunderland (16) in the Premier League this season, while only West Ham (20) have dropped more points from winning positions than Newcastle (19).

However, just Brighton (eight – W3 D5) have avoided defeat in more different Premier League games when conceding the first goal this season than Sunderland (seven – W4 D3). 

Sunderland won 1-0 at Leeds in their last Premier League away game. They last won consecutively on the road in May 2014, while they last did so without conceding in October 1999.

Although Opta's predictive model is forecasting a home victory, Newcastle are winless in their last five home league games against Sunderland (D2 L3), with this their first such meeting at St James' Park since a 1-1 draw in March 2016.

Sunderland are unbeaten in their last 10 league games against Newcastle (W7 D3), winning seven of the last eight.

OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

Newcastle United - 60.8%

Draw - 20.6%

Sunderland - 18.6%