Krul set for a chance of a lifetime

Newcastle goalkeeper Tim Krul admits he is having to pinch himself at what has been a remarkable season for the North-East outfit.

Krul claims he would have received funny looks if he had suggested back in August that the Magpies would go into their final game of the season still in with a chance of qualifying for the Champions League. The 24-year-old Holland international embarked on the campaign having been installed as Alan Pardew's number one and intent on improving upon the 12th-place finish the Magpies had secured at the end of the first term back in the Barclays Premier League. But they will run out at Everton knowing they can finish no lower than fifth no matter what happens and, if they can win at Goodison Park, they could yet snatch even third place from current occupants Arsenal and a dream ticket to Europe's biggest table. Krul said: "It's a really important game and the chance of a lifetime. Hopefully one of the other teams, Arsenal or Tottenham, will drop some points and we could be there. To say that with one game to go is something special. "Finishing above Chelsea and Liverpool - if you had said that at the start of the season, people would have said you were mad. I would have said you were mad, so that shows you what a fantastic season we have had and we can be proud of that. "That gives us more confidence to go to Everton and prove how good we are."