The chairman believes that victory against Manchester United on Saturday will put us right back in the thick of the championship chase and is confident that the players can bounce back from Neale Barry’s costly decision.
"Sunday at Goodison was a small step backwards for us but this weekend we can take a big step forward if we beat Manchester United," said Shepherd.
"Obviously we are now outsiders for the championship but we are Geordies and we will keep going for the title as long as it is mathematically possible for us to win the silverware.
"Sir Alex Ferguson said that last night's game with Real Madrid was one of the biggest games in the world, well Saturday is a massive, massive match as well."
A lot will depend on how Manchester United’s players cope with their hiding at the hands of Real Madrid on Tuesday, but history suggests that they are a fairly resilient bunch.
What would we give to have Zidane and Raul on our side on Saturday?