Owen: Necastle, It’s time to stand up

Michael Owen has described next weekend’s Premier League match against Hull City as Newcastle’s ‘cup final’.

“The game at Hull City on Saturday week is at the moment shaping up to be our cup final – and the other games against teams around us, Stoke City, Portsmouth and Middlesbrough, could also be crucial,” Owen told the club’s official website.

“We’ve got some tough games coming up, yes, but we’ve also got some very winnable games – games which, if we do win them, will put our biggest rivals in trouble”.

“However, this is now the time when we have to stand up and be counted – just like we did last year, when we put together a very good seven-match unbeaten run.