Former England [ Images ] captain Alan Shearer will carry the hopes of an entire city on his shoulders when he leads Newcastle United out to face Olympique Marseille [ Images ] in tonight's UEFA [ Images ] 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 [ Images ] 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 [ Images ], 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 [ Images ] 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 [ Images ] and Liverpool in previous rounds, will be looking to their own goal provider, Didier Drogba [ Images ], 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.