HAPOEL Bnei Sakhnin coach Eyal Lachman has pinpointed Newcastle skipper Alan Shearer as the man his side have to stop if they are to achieve the upset of all upsets in this evening's UEFA Cup first-round second-leg tie.

Sakhnin must overhaul a two-goal deficit if they are to achieve the greatest result in their brief history by knocking the Magpies out of the competition following their first-leg defeat a fortnight ago.

Shearer was left on the bench as United won 2-0 on Tyneside, but the former England international is expected to be back in the starting line-up this evening and Lachman has identified his leadership qualities as the key factor standing between Sakhnin and continued involvement in the UEFA Cup.

"Napoleon said that in war there is the leader, the first person that convinces everyone else that the smallest can still be the winners," said Lachman, somewhat cryptically.

"I look at how he (Shearer) tries now to be a leader of the team. In war, like in football, sometimes it's not the machine that counts or the talent, but the type of people.

"I appreciate his type and I hope that our players in Israel will go on to make a long career like Shearer's."

With Shearer due to retire at the end of the season, this will be the Newcastle skipper's final chance to add some European silverware to his impressive career record.

He might have celebrated his 34th birthday last month but, according to Lachman, he is anything but finished as a footballer.

"On average in Israel, the career of footballers ends at about 28 years old," said the Sakhnin boss. "But we know that in Europe players will be at their peak at about 30.

"We know that from the foreign players who have come over to Israel over the last few seasons. They have been the most successful and so I would say that Shearer is a fine example for players in Israel."

Lachman will be without three of his most senior players in the cavernous Ramat Gan Stadium tonight. Skipper Abas Suan is suspended following his red card in the first leg, while defenders Nidal Shalata (foot) and Mahran Abu Raiah (hamstring) are sidelined.

* West Brom defender Darren Purse has been charged with violent conduct by the FA following Saturday's 3-1 defeat at Newcastle. The charge relates to an incident when team-mate Riccardo Scimeca needed treatment.

Read more about Newcastle United FC here.