Former England captain Alan Shearer will carry the hopes of an entire city on his shoulders when he leads Newcastle United out to face Olympique Marseille in tonight's UEFA Cup semi-finals.

The Newcastle captain will almost certainly be without strike partners Craig Bellamy and Shola Ameobi through injury as he bids to line up a cup final against either Valencia or Villarreal of Spain on May 19 in Gothenburg.

The first leg at St James' Park has turned into something of a minefield for manager Bobby Robson, whose England midfielder Jermaine Jenas is also set to be ruled out.

His team are also chasing a fourth place finish in the premier league, worth a slot in the Champions League qualifiers, and he must balance the needs of both competitions.

"The squad becomes important now and whatever team I send out will fight and play with spirit," Robson told the club's web site.

Marseille, who knocked out Inter Milan and Liverpool in previous rounds, will be looking to their own goal provider, Didier Drogba, to give them a cushion before the second leg at the Stade Velodrome.

Primera Liga leaders Valencia will be favourites to see off a Villarreal side who are making their first appearance in Europe after qualifying from the Intertoto Cup.

Villarreal's main hope on Thursday will be their home form, having kept a clean sheet in their eight European ties to date at El Madrigal.