Barcelona crushes Newcastle
Barcelona demolished Newcastle 7–2 at Spotify Camp Nou to win 8–3 on aggregate and reach the Champions League quarterfinals — a statement night that underlines their title credentials. The result was part of the batch of round‑of‑16 outcomes locking in the last eight for the competition. ( ) (uefa.com)
Raphinha opened the scoring in the 6th minute and added a second in the 72nd, Robert Lewandowski struck in the 56th and 61st minutes, Marc Bernal and Fermín López also scored for Barcelona, Lamine Yamal converted a 45+7' penalty, and Anthony Elanga grabbed Newcastle's two goals in the 15th and 28th minutes. (espn.com) The seven-goal haul equals Barcelona's record for goals in a Champions League knockout match — their previous high was a 7–1 win over Bayer Leverkusen in 2011–12 — and Newcastle conceding seven ties the worst defensive showing by an English side in UEFA competition, matching Tottenham's 7–2 loss to Bayern Munich in October 2019. (espn.com) Anthony Elanga's brace came after a 35‑game goalless run across the Premier League and Champions League this season, with both strikes arriving inside a 13‑minute spell to briefly revive Newcastle's hopes. (espn.com) Hansi Flick called it a "crazy game" and credited a galvanising half‑time team talk for Barcelona's one‑sided second half in post‑match comments. (sports.yahoo.com) UEFA confirmed Barcelona will face Atlético Madrid in the quarter‑finals, with the first leg scheduled for 8 April and the return on 14 April (kick‑offs 21:00 CET), as the Champions League last‑eight schedule was published. (uefa.com) Newcastle manager Eddie Howe described the result as "strange" and vowed to rebuild the squad with the objective of returning the club to Champions League competition in future seasons. (soccernews.com)
