“You have to win”: Shearer fires up Newcastle ahead of Sunderland clash and warns hurt of defeat will linger | OneFootball

Alan Shearer has warned Newcastle United that it will 'hurt for a while' if the club lose today's Tyne-Wear Derby against Sunderland at St James' Park.

Newcastle host their fierce rivals in thePremier League this lunchtime, needing a positive result to keep alive their European ambitions. The Magpies exited the Champions League in midweek and three points would keep them in the race for a return to the competition next season.

However, Newcastle have a poor recent record in derbies against Sunderland. Eddie Howe's side lost the reverse fixture 1-0 at The Stadium of Light and have not beaten Sunderland in 10 attempts in thePremier League. Their last league win over The Black Cats came in 2011.

Shearer, who scored a club record 206 goals for Newcastle, admits the fixture matters far more than most.

"I loved the games," Shearer toldnewcastleunited.com.

"You can definitely get away with a little bit more in terms of the referees because they understand what it means to you.

"You feel the passion. When the fixtures are out, it's not Liverpool, Arsenal or Man United that you look for. It's Sunderland and when you play them home and away.

"You have to win and be on the right side of it otherwise it hurts you for a while but they're brilliant games to play in and be involved in.

"I can remember all the goals and games, both the good and the bad. Sometimes, you have to put up with the bad but that's the way it is in football.

"I can remember them all, walking up the tunnel and back down it with the emotions and feeling that goes with it.

"You can hear and feel the atmosphere when you're on the way to the stadium. There's just something very different about it in a great way."