Alan Pardew: “The Europa League’s had no impact on us this week because of the extra day.
“That extra day is massive – huge. If fans don’t understand how important it is, they have to trust me.
“My stats tell me everything I need to know about my players. They can’t physically reach that level with two and a half days rest.
“Extra rest gives us an opportunity, and I protected the team on Thursday – there’s no doubt about that.”