Newcastle complete Southampton journey as club issue statement after Storm Eowyn problems
Newcastle's flight to Southampton was in doubt this morning with the UK being battered by Storm Eowyn but it has been confirmed that the team have travelled.
Despite the chaos wrought by Storm Eowyn, Newcastle United eventually obtained clearance to jet off to the south coast this afternoon.
While flights from Portugal and Ireland were struggling to touch down at Newcastle Airport, a club spokesperson confirmed: "The team's flight to Southampton took off and landed safely and as scheduled this afternoon."
The Magpies' journey was shrouded in doubt earlier today due to severe weather alerts.
Before deciding on their departure, club officials liaised closely with relevant authorities as Newcastle Airport faced significant disruptions.
An amber warning looms over the entire north east until 9pm on Friday, 24 January with gusts that could reach a fearsome 90mph when the storm makes landfall.
Eddie Howe, speaking at his press conference today, said: "Our travel plans might be affected. We will check with the authorities. We'll see how today goes."
"Our plan, as always, is to travel today, but we'll seek advice from the authorities at the airport and everyone involved whether it's safe to fly. If it's not, we could end up travelling tomorrow morning."
"It is a long journey, and also there's no guarantee with the wind and the conditions, and what you think might be an eight, nine-hour journey might turn into a 12, 13-hour journey, so we've got to be careful, I think, in that respect, so I think it's probably best that we look to do that."
However, Newcastle's squad are now already in Hampshire, with no reported problems ahead of the showdown at St Mary's.
This article originally appeared on Chronicle Live
