Dan

Yet it could have been so different after Newcastle initially handled a white-hot atmosphere so well by gaining the upper hand.

The noise levels were certainly deafening before kick-off – even referee Maurizio Mariani and the officials were loudly whistled when they emerged for the warm-up.

Flares were let off, ticker tape flickered in the air and a stunning tifo rose from the terraces with an accompanying banner reading “For my town, for my club”.

But Newcastle were ready for it.

They had travelled early, trained at the Velodrome on Monday evening and looked to prepare slightly differently on game day, “to keep the players mentally engaged and ready for this game” in Howe’s own words.

That preparation looked to have paid off against a side second in Ligue 1.

Rather than being cowed by the crowd, Newcastle made an aggressive start.

They got their reward when Harvey Barnes – fresh from his match-winning double against Manchester City on Sunday – fired his side in front in the sixth minute.

But, crucially, Newcastle failed to press home their advantage and Marseille rallied.

The visitors had enough warnings after Aubameyang spurned a series of opportunities in the first half.

However, the much-travelled Marseille forward was not so forgiving after the break, as Newcastle paid a heavy price for a sloppy kick-off.

Defender Fabian Schar punted the ball forward and his side failed to get it back under control after losing a series of duels deep in the opposition half.

It was far too easy for Timothy Weah to take a number of players out of the game with a pass to Darryl Bakola and the 17-year-old played a through-ball into the right-hand channel behind Newcastle’s defence.

A Marseille equaliser was not exactly a foregone conclusion given how far away Aubameyang was from goal.

But keeper Nick Pope rushed off his line in an attempt to get there ahead of Aubameyang, only to be caught in no man’s land as the forward nipped in and finished superbly from a tight angle out on the right wing.

Howe was keen to stress he “backed” Pope after the game, despite the poor decision, pointing to how the goalkeeper made “some really good saves against Manchester City just three days ago”.

But this was a night where his side’s vulnerabilities at the back, and on the road, reared their head again.

LEGENDARY The Simpsons writer Dan McGrath has died at the age of 61, his family announced.

The award-winning comedy writer, who also worked on Saturday Night Live, died following a stroke, his sister said.

Gail Garabadian wrote on Facebook: “We lost my incredible brother Danny yesterday. He was a special man, one of a kind.

“An incredible son, brother, uncle and friend. Our hearts are broken.”

She told Hollywood Reporter that he passed away at NYU Langone Hospital in Brooklyn.

Dan kicked off his career at SNL, when he often collaborated with Adam Sandler.

He then had two stints as a writer for The Simpsons, followed by eight years on King of the Hill.

He went on to win an Emmy for writing the iconic 1997 Simpsons episode Homer’s Phobia.

The episode sees Homer befriending an antiques dealer, and later discovering he is gay.

It was also honoured by GLAAD – which promotes fairness in media – for its anti-homophobia message.

Dan is survived by his wife Caroline, his mother, Eleanor and siblings as well as nieces and nephews.

The writer cut his teeth on Harvard University’s student comedy publication, The Harvard Lampoon.

He landed a job for Saturday Night Live in 1991, and stayed there for two seasons.

During that time, he shared an Emmy nomination.

He began working on The Simpsons in 1992, and wrote 50 episodes across two years.

Dan later received producing credits on 24 episodes from 1996-98.

His most memorable episodes include The Devil and Homer Simpson, Time and Punishment, Bart of Darkness, instalments of the Treehouse of Horror series, Boy-Scoutz ’n the Hood and Homer’s Phobia.

Dan said that both his runs with the show ended with him being fired.

This is a breaking news story, more to follow…