Frank Lampard has paid tribute to Newcastle United's 'amazing' supporters after the Everton boss revealed the Toon Army 'affected' his side at St James' Park back in January.
Lampard's first league game in charge of the Toffees actually came against Newcastle and, although the visitors took the lead that night, the Magpies roared back to win the game 3-1 to move out of the relegation zone. It was a night where even Kieran Trippier admitted the atmosphere was something he 'never experienced in his career' while Ryan Fraser hailed the fans for 'getting us through that' under the lights.
With that sort of backing, perhaps, it is not a surprise that Eddie Howe has picked up 62% of his points at St James'. Certainly Wolves, Leicester City, Crystal Palace, Liverpool and Arsenal will encounter a very different atmosphere when they travel to Tyneside later this season for the first time since Howe was appointed and the club's takeover was completed.
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Although Howe's side suffered a 1-0 defeat at Everton on Thursday night, Lampard was keen to reference the remarkable atmosphere he experienced in the reverse fixture on Tyneside while discussing the role Goodison played in his side's crucial win.
"We went to Newcastle, my first league game, and we had it the other way around," Lampard told Amazon Prime Video Sport. "Their crowd were amazing and it affected the team.
"Our crowd were brilliant. First half was hard. Big spaces. There were some tactical things that were hard for us to deal with and, at half-time, I just wanted to be so positive with the team and use the atmosphere and use the side of the game that this club needs to have.
"Everton fans want to see passion. They want to see what they feel and there's been a lot of negativity around the players, the fans and all this stuff this week. It proved what we can be tonight."
