“Hopefully with a period of the game to go, we will be in that position. It is a tough venue playing Brighton – new stadium, they are having a good season and they have quality players.

“The FA Cup, just by the nature of it, makes players excel and you do not get a jump in class quite as much as you do in the FA Cup.

“Sometimes you can jump three divisions or whatever and it just brings people to their best game.

“We have to be wary of that and make sure we have our best game – if we do, we will win.

“Without naming names, we are pretty much confident we know their starting line-up.

“They are a good team and one that play expansive football – patient too, which is unusual in a Championship side. It will be interesting.”

Newcastle have not won the FA Cup since 1955, or any major trophy since the 1969 Fairs Cup.

It is a run goalkeeper Tim Krul finds hard to rationalise with the size and standing of the club.

The Dutchman said: “It has all the attributes – the stadium, the fans.

“If you see the clubs who have won prizes, I cannot see why we cannot get to the FA Cup final or push on as a top-six team.

“I have said it for years now, Newcastle has got everything to be one of the top teams and we are showing that this season.”

Captain Fabricio Coloccini is, in Pardew’s words “touch and go” to play tonight.

With Newcastle yet to sign the defender they have targeted in this transfer window , James Perch will deputise if needed.