Newcastle moved above Manchester City into third position in the table as goals from Sandro Tonali and Bruno Guimaraes secured all three points at St James’ Park, with the first-half dismissal of Nicolas Jackson for an elbow on Sven Botman reducing Chelsea to ten men.
The Magpies head to Arsenal on Sunday before hosting Everton on the final day of the season, and their huge goal difference advantage over Aston Villa means a win in either game will secure a top-five finish and a place in the Champions League.
Newcastle were last in Europe’s elite competition two seasons ago, and Howe feels the experience gained from taking on the likes of Paris St Germain and Borussia Dortmund, as well as the boost provided by two Wembley appearances in the last three seasons, means his side are now happy on the biggest of stages.
“I think we’ve become used to the big games,” said the Magpies boss. “I don’t think that was the case when we first arrived, but we’ve slowly built our league position. Having two cup finals and the Champions League experience has definitely helped us in that respect.
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“I think now there’s a much better reaction to the bigger occasions, and no bigger than today really. The pressure on us was huge, with the expectation and the crowd, and you’ve got to try to use all those things to your advantage.”
Newcastle have moved three points ahead of Chelsea in the race for Champions League qualification, but Howe insists he and his players will be taking nothing for granted ahead of their final two games.
“It’s a massive win for us,” he said. “We knew that before the game, we knew the importance. It’s so tight, and that has put us in a stronger position, but it’s still very tight and we’ve got two games where we have to keep our focus and try to get as many points as we can.”
